


cherry wine

by uwuxuxi



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Vampire, Blood, Blood Drinking, Bureaucracy, Explicit Sexual Content, Happy Ending, Historical Inaccuracy, Historical References, Light Angst, M/M, Non-Explicit Sex, Recreational Drug Use, probably some - Freeform, with vampires!
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-04
Updated: 2021-03-05
Packaged: 2021-03-16 04:55:41
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 31,412
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29201706
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/uwuxuxi/pseuds/uwuxuxi
Summary: If someone asked Renjun what his greatest fear was back in the beginning of the year, it probably would have been not finishing his thesis on time. That was before Sungchan’s immune system failed in early May, before Renjun took a hiatus on his master’s program, before his entire world narrowed down to a sterile hospital room and all of the machines that were trying to save his boyfriend’s life.[Or, Renjun is a human in charge of two new vampires and struggles through the idiocy of Vampire Bureaucrats.]
Relationships: Huang Ren Jun/Jung Sungchan, Jung Yoonoh | Jaehyun/Qian Kun, Kim Dongyoung | Doyoung/Nakamoto Yuta, Lee Taeyong/Suh Youngho | Johnny, Minor or Background Relationship(s), Na Jaemin/Wong Kun Hang | Hendery
Comments: 24
Kudos: 93





	1. i.

**Author's Note:**

> hello hello!!! it's ya boy, mars, back with my first very long fic. ever. some of you guys might have seen the thread this is adapted from on twitter and you don't have to read it before this because it's chock full of typos but it is rated t rather than this more mature/explicit version of it. the explicit chapters will be marked and i will put warnings if you'd like to skip them and just read the new content! here's the [thread](https://twitter.com/faeriedoyoung/status/1350162987361968131?s=20)
> 
> very much un-beta'd & the title is taken from cherry wine by hozier

If someone asked Renjun what his greatest fear was back in the beginning of the year, it probably would have been not finishing his thesis on time. That was before Sungchan’s immune system failed in early May, before Renjun took a hiatus on his master’s program before his entire world narrowed down to a sterile hospital room and all of the machines that were trying to save his boyfriend’s life.

“Where are his parents?” Dead, three years ago, a car crash. “Who makes his medical decisions?” Jisung, his freshly nineteen-year-old brother. “He’s too young.” Oh, I know, Renjun thinks, as if he isn’t only three years older. “You can’t speak for them.” _Watch me_ , Renjun thinks.

It’s a cycle that repeats at least twice daily. Renjun and Jisung both have had enough of it and when Jeno comes to visit one day, he brings his lawyer uncle with him and sits with Jisung, holding him around the shoulders to comfort him while he finally breaks down.

He’s never cried in front of Renjun and Jeno is positive that he never will. Jeno doesn’t think that it’s healthy and especially not when Renjun does the same thing, but it works. Renjun and Jeno’s uncle return with red eyes but the power of attorney is almost in Renjun’s hands and _maybe_ , just _maybe_ , someone will listen to them now. 

Jeno takes Jisung home and pulls Renjun into a tight hug before he goes, hooking his chin over his shoulder. They stay like that for a long time, Renjun wrapped up in the comforting familiarity of Jeno’s arms as Jeno rocks him gently from side to side before Jeno has to go and he presses a soft kiss to Renjun’s forehead. “He’s going to get better,” Jeno whispers and Renjun holds him a little tighter.

“Get Jisung home,” he says softly and pushes his hair back from his face. He lets a smile curl onto his lips and it’s enough for Jeno to wrap his arm around Jisung’s shoulders and guide him out of the hospital.

Renjun sits in silent vigil at Sungchan’s bed, his boyfriend’s hand in his and his other hand stroking gently through Sungchan’s hair. He’s gently thumbing at his hairline and singing softly to him. It’s a familiar sight for most of Sungchan’s nurses but there is a small knock on the door sometime around midnight. Renjun knows that he has to go soon and turns his head to protest when he sees the man in the doorway and his long white coat. 

Renjun is not excited to meet another doctor but this man is new, even to Sungchan, who shifts a little in his bed to get a little more comfortable. There’s a soft smile on his face and he sets the clipboard in his hands down as he closes the door behind himself. 

“Sorry to interrupt, but I’m your new primary doctor–Dr. Suh, but you can just call me Johnny. You have a very lovely voice.” Johnny’s voice is kind and it eases Renjun’s hackles as he helps Sungchan sit up in his bed. His eyes are soft yet alert, following every movement and hitch in Sungchan’s breath with an attentiveness that Renjun simply wasn’t used to from all of the doctors and nurses who had been taking care of Sungchan up until this point. “You must be...Renjun and you’re Sungchan, right? Yeri,” the nightly nurse, Renjun likes her, “told me that you stay late to sing.”

“I do, it helps him sleep,” Renjun replies, holding Sungchan’s hand in both of his. “What happened to Dr. Kim?”

Johnny wrinkles his nose and Renjun feels a little better about hating the doctor’s guts now that he knows the sentiment is shared. “Moved patients. You won’t have to deal with him again.”

Sungchan smirks, offering Johnny a wave as he pulls up a chair to sit on the other side of his bed. “Good riddance, I think. You look young, for a doctor. Do you know what you’re doing?”

“I have much more experience than you’d think, Sungchan,” Johnny says and the playful turn to his voice makes Renjun’s brow lift in suspicion. “We know that your immune system is rejecting all attempts to kick this bout of flu but we don’t really know why. I know this has been long and infuriating but if you’re willing to work with me, I want to make this work for you.”

Renjun considers Johnny thoughtfully and strokes his thumb over Sungchan’s hand. “Do you think there are complications?” He asks softly and Sungchan swallows on the bed. Sungchan doesn’t like talking about his medical problems, about how he’s always had a fragile immune system, and how even the simplest of colds could lay him out for a week. He’s had this...flu or whatever it is for nearly three weeks now with seemingly no signs of recovery but he’s not getting worse, either.

It’s a difficult spot to be in and the doctors have not been kind about it.

“I’m not sure, but I’m willing to find out, no matter how long it takes.” When Johnny’s hand reaches over to rest on Renjun and Sungchan’s joined ones, they both jump a little at the chill on his skin. He smiles at their hesitation and pulls his hand back after patting the top of theirs soothingly. “We’ll work together and we’ll figure it out.”

Surprisingly, they believe him. 

A week later, Sungchan’s flu turns into pneumonia and the only thing Renjun and Jisung know is fear as they sit inside Sungchan’s room while Johnny perches on the edge of his bed and holds a nebulizer to his mouth to help him breathe through the tightness in his chest. There’s a faraway look in Johnny’s eyes like he’s miles away from the hospital room they’re all sitting in and remembering something that happened lifetimes ago.

But he’s only twenty-seven. It’s not possible…

Renjun’s stupid for not seeing it before when one of his best friends in the world is a werewolf but the cold that radiates off of Johnny’s skin and the golden flecks in Johnny’s warm hazel eyes are not human. He has to be something more.

Yangyang’s a non-human biology major. He would know. But agelessness is only in two non-human species and Johnny doesn't quite strike him as a witch.

“You’re a vampire.” The words leave Renjun’s mouth unbidden and he would regret them if Johnny didn’t smile at him. His eyes are sad and he rubs Sungchan’s back in slow circles as Sungchan leans against him, breath finally evened out after his coughing fit. “Aren’t you?”

“You’re quick,” Johnny says, sitting up a little straighter and considering Renjun and the tight grip he has around Jisung’s shoulders. He can tell that Renjun knows he’s not strong enough to fight Johnny but in the week that he’s known these three boys, he can tell that Renjun is as sharp as a whip. He’d find a way to get Johnny away from Sungchan if he thought Johnny was a danger to him. 

But he knows that Johnny isn’t. 

What a spectacular little human he is.

Sungchan looks up at Johnny and closes his eyes to search for the tell-tale beating of a human heart and exhales in a sharp cough of surprise when he doesn’t find one. Renjun’s not often wrong about anything but it’s still surprising to know that Sungchan’s doctor is a _vampire_. 

He wonders what that means about Johnny’s husband, whose picture Johnny keeps in a golden locket around his throat and who smiles with a little dog in his arms on the lock screen of Johnny’s phone. He can’t imagine that he’s anything other than a vampire but Sungchan now has far more questions than he has answers to.

“Is it hard to be a vampire and a doctor?” Jisung asks, hugging one of his legs to his chest after the silence carries on for a bit too long for his comfort. “Like, all of the emergencies and the blood and stuff?”

“It used to be,” Johnny answers easily before turning his attention back to Renjun. “You have a question, I can see it burning the very tip of your tongue, sport. I won’t be upset if you ask it, I promise.”

 _Sport_. Johnny’s been twenty-seven for at least a hundred years, Sungchan guesses. 

Renjun licks his lips before sighing softly. “You will do all you can, medically, right?” Johnny nods and Renjun twists one of the rings on his finger. “And if you can’t. If you can’t help him, if there’s no medical cure or if it’s something worse like...cancer, or something.”

“Renjun…” It’s hard to hear their fears voiced like this and Sungchan has to look out of the window, fists tight around his sheets, but Renjun powers through.

“If it’s something you can’t take care of medically. What will you do?”

Johnny’s quiet for a moment, considering every option he has before he rubs Sungchan’s back again and lifts his chin in Renjun and Jisung’s direction. “If it comes down to dying or saving Sungchan’s life in the only way I know how, if you’d let me–all of you–I would turn you all. Not all at once, but I would like to save you, Sungchan, and save your family in turn. The choice is yours to make and I will not ask for an answer tonight–.”

“If it’s between living forever with my little brother and my boyfriend and dying, Johnny, I’m going to choose to live.” It’s the strongest Sungchan’s voice has been in weeks and Johnny smiles at him. The warmth in his eyes makes something just as soft grow in Renjun’s belly. 

“Agreed,” Jisung says with a small smile of his own. Johnny turns his gaze to Renjun and isn’t surprised to find a burning determination in his eyes. He says ‘yes’ aloud, too, but Johnny knew from the moment he suggested the idea that Renjun would be on board.

Renjun is too much like Taeyong to do anything else.

For a while, Sungchan responds well to the treatments for pneumonia and Renjun allows himself to hope that things won't come to the worst possible solution. He thinks about how they’ll probably be out of the hospital soon and they will be back on track for their degrees and all will be well. 

Everything will be fine.

•❅──────✧❅✦❅✧──────❅•

Renjun and Jisung are half asleep in their apartment when Johnny calls them at 2 am, trying to keep his voice calm but Renjun knows what bad news sounds like at this point in his life. He’s seen both his and his boyfriend’s parents die. Bad news calls are nothing new to him.

“I’m bringing him to you,” is all Johnny says and Renjun rattles their address off on reflex with trembling hands. They’d been in and out of the hospital for nearly three months now and Johnny promises Renjun that it will be fine, Sungchan will be okay, before he hangs up the phone and Renjun falls into Jisung’s arms. Jisung must have opened the window in the middle of the call and the hot July night air whips into their apartment. It should be soothing but all Renjun can think about is the fact that Johnny is taking Sungchan from the hospital to the apartment because he’s _dying_.

Sungchan is dying.

Jisung pulls Renjun up into his arms, rocking back and forth on the floor with him, and letting their tears fall together for the first time since Sungchan got sick. 

He doesn’t know how long it takes for Johnny to get to the apartment. He only lets go of Renjun long enough to go open the door and wipe his tears as he sees another man with Johnny and his older brother. He has a kind face with dimples but there is a serious worry in his eyes as Jisung steps aside to welcome them in. Sungchan is pale in Johnny’s arms and Jisung can only tell that he’s alive because he’s taking short little gasps that rattle in his throat. “Hyung…” Sungchan barely responds but when Renjun scrambles off of the floor, he reaches his hand out for him.

They don’t stop Renjun from taking it. 

Johnny introduces his companion as Jaehyun, a longtime friend, and sets Sungchan down on the couch. This is going to be a difficult business with so many moving parts but he has to save Sungchan now before it’s too late.

Renjun is rigid and Jaehyun gently takes him by the hand to sit him down. Renjun lifts his eyes to meet him and swallows the lump that’s thick in his throat as Jaehyun holds both of his hands in his own.

“You don’t know me,” he says softly and Renjun gives a short nod, “but I’m here for you. I’m going to make sure that nothing happens to any of you during this. Oh, honey,” Jaehyun reaches up and gently wipes the tears slipping down his cheeks. “You’re not going to lose him tonight, I promise you that.”

Surprisingly, Renjun believes him. He lets Jaehyun wrap his arms around him in a hug, strong and surprisingly warm for him to clearly be a vampire himself, and watches Johnny talk Sungchan through the transition. All Renjun really catches is that there will be pain, extreme pain, but Sungchan will make it through.

He _has_ to make it through.

“Do you remember when you were turned?” Renjun asks Jaehyun very softly as Jisung settles on the opposite side of the room with them to watch Johnny. He’s hugging his legs to his chest and staring at Sungchan’s weak form on the couch. 

“1985,” Jaehyun answers easily and rubs Renjun’s arm. “It is...horribly uncomfortable but I think it’s worth it, in the end.” That makes Jaehyun a very _young_ vampire but now is not the time to pry because Johnny sinks his needle-thin fangs into Sungchan’s wrist the next moment and Renjun is clinging to Jaehyun for dear life. He expects Sungchan to scream or cry out but all he does is whimper and grip Johnny’s shoulder with his free hand. He trembles something fierce until Johnny, his mouth red with Sungchan’s blood–with Sungchan’s _blood_ , Renjun is going to be dizzy–pulls away to slice open his own wrist with his teeth before cradling Sungchan’s head to him so he could feed.

It’s a messy business. Johnny’s blood smears down his wrist and Sungchan’s lips while Sungchan tries to figure out how to drink and Renjun thinks he blacks out after that. He’s shifted in Jaehyun’s arms and heard a scared little whine from the other side of the room. 

“He’s alright,” Johnny says softly, stroking Sungchan’s hair back from his face before smiling when Sungchan opens his mouth to complain. His canines were sharper, a clear sign that Johnny’s blood was taking root, and Johnny wipes the corner of his mouth with his thumb. “Is he conscious, Jae?”

Jaehyun makes an affirmative sound and smiles as Renjun’s eyes flutter open. “Shock from all of the blood, I think.” Renjun holds up a thumbs up in agreement and Johnny chuckles softly. “Can he come over? It might help.”

Johnny nods and moves to help Renjun across the room but Renjun moves easily even with his fuzzy head and settles down beside the couch to sit with his boyfriend. He holds his breath and Sungchan does the same before he holds his arms out for Renjun to collapse into his chest. He presses his nose to Renjun’s neck and inhales deeply, tears coating his long lashes as he puts the two older vampires on edge. 

But Sungchan doesn’t bite Renjun. He simply holds him close and cries into his shoulder as Renjun holds him this shy of too tight. 

Jaehyun raises a brow at Johnny, who looks impressed, and Jaehyun realizes that Johnny has planned for this or something close to it. All of their scents were in this room, enveloping Sungchan’s newly heightened senses, but he’s found the one scent he needs above all others: his mate’s.

Jisung watches them for a long moment before he looks up at Johnny and smiles. Jaehyun isn’t surprised that he’s taking the thought of immortality in stride. “Are you ready, kiddo? It’s gonna hurt.” Jisung looks at a picture that hangs on the wall and Jaehyun finds himself following his gaze to a small boy wrapped up in Jisung’s arms in the picture. 

“I’m ready,” Jisung says after a beat of silence and Jaehyun gives his shoulder a squeeze. “I’m sure. Even if I have to lay on the floor.” He doesn’t want to leave Sungchan and Renjun and Johnny can’t blame him for that even as he cuts his eyes to Jaehyun for him to switch places and take up watch over Sungchan. 

Renjun doesn’t watch Jisung’s transition begin because he doesn’t want to throw up and Jisung’s soft whines of pain are already hard enough combined with Sungchan trembling underneath his hands.

It’s going to be a long night.

•❅──────✧❅✦❅✧──────❅•

It takes three weeks for Johnny to not come back to the apartment. 

It takes two more days for Jaehyun to come to the apartment in his stead, face pinched in anger, and Renjun’s stomach drops into the floor. Renjun lets him in, tells him that the boys are sleeping away an ache in their jaws, and grips the counter to prepare himself for the bad news that must be on Jaehyun’s tongue. He wished that it would get easier to receive bad news. 

“Johnny was reporting the transition of Sungchan and Jisung to the council–oh. yeah. Vampire bureaucrats are worse than human ones. Absolute dick riders.–when they censured him for it.”

Renjun stares at Jaehyun in utter disbelief. “They _arrested_ him? With _two_ fledglings?”

“Yes. And I’m so sorry that I can’t stay but—“

“I understand,” Renjun interrupts him, shaking his head as he thinks about the possibilities. “You can’t get arrested, too, we’d have no one. Can you do something for me, though?”

“Anything that will help,” Jaehyun agrees, his eyes following Renjun as he goes to get his phone and a notepad to write a number down. “I’ll try to come once a week.” His voice is so soft and he is trying to be as comforting as he can but Renjun is moving with a singular focus that can’t take the kindness into consideration.

“If someone starts getting suspicious of you, stop. I mean it.” Renjun finishes writing the number down and hands it to Jaehyun. “That’s my friend Yangyang. He works at a blood bank and can get us a steady supply. I can get it after today but we’re running out and they’re going to need some by tomorrow.” Jaehyun studies Renjun and watches the way he puts all of his bad emotions in a box to be dealt with later. 

He doesn’t need to ask why Renjun can’t go get the blood himself because his scent permeates the house and leaving two fledglings who no longer have their sire and won’t have the scent of one of the vampires closest to him would be a nightmare. Renjun is quick and clever and Jaehyun admires his determination to make this work. He doesn’t know if he would be as level-headed in this situation but he’s grateful that Renjun is. 

It would be a disaster if he wasn’t.

Jaehyun memorizes the number quickly before handing it back to Renjun. “I’ll be back in an hour or so. And grab you dinner.” He can _tell_ Renjun hasn’t eaten and smiles fondly as his ears burn. “Don’t worry, okay? I’ll be in touch after this even if I can’t help directly.”

“Thank you,” Renjun says softly and leans against Jaehyun’s chest when he’s pulled into a hug. Jaehyun smells like linen detergent and an expensive perfume that Renjun can’t quite put his finger on but finds comfort in. “I mean it, thank you…”

“You don’t have to be strong all on your own, okay?” Jaehyun strokes Renjun’s hair and tries not to sigh at the fear that he can smell coming off of Renjun in waves. He doesn’t know if he’ll make it out of this but Jaehyun saw Sungchan _and_ Jisung hold themselves back from biting Renjun minutes after being turned into vampires with hunger itching their throats. 

Renjun is capable of taking care of them on his own even if he shouldn’t have to. Jaehyun only wishes that he could be of more help to them.

•❅──────✧❅✦❅✧──────❅•

Sungchan sits on the windowsill, eyes sleepy but focused on the street below. It’s been three weeks since they’ve last seen Johnny but Jaehyun still checks in every week to check in on their progress. He’s pulled back some, wary of being caught and leading the council directly to the boys, but Renjun has been great at keeping up with their feedings and making sure that they’re both alright. That _he_ will be alright with two newborn vampires living with him. 

He’d gone to the blood bank around 2 am when he knew that Dejun or Yangyang would be on shift and no one would be around to see them sneak blood out to their friend for his vampire charges.

Renjun is never late and the sun is lightening the horizon. He doesn’t need to look at the lucky cat clock they have on the wall to guess that it’s almost 5 am now and Renjun simply hasn’t been gone this long before. He doesn’t think that Renjun has abandoned them because that’s simply not in his nature, but the threat of the council has been looming over their heads ever since Johnny was taken away from them a month ago. Jisung is starting to stir in his bedroom, grumpy with the fledgling hunger that’s changed their lives significantly, and as another minute ticks by, Sungchan worries. He does a lot of worrying nowadays but it’s still probably less than the worry that courses through Renjun every waking moment and some of his sleeping ones. They’ve all had too many nightmares recently.

He’s about to leave the windowsill to see how much blood they have in the fridge for breakfast when he sees a familiar head of brown hair and a tan trench coat hurrying across the street. Renjun looks exceptionally harried and Sungchan knows at once that Yangyang was at the blood bank and giving him a hard time. It’s the best possible reality and Sungchan lets all of the anxiety that has built up in his chest out with a soft sigh before he quietly gets up to let him in with the buzzer.

Renjun’s face is flushed with the exertion of running up four flights of stairs to get inside as much as possible, breath coming fast, and Sungchan is enchanted by the hummingbird beating of his heart and the rushing of his blood. It’s gotten easier to ignore but when Renjun is like this, so beautifully human, Sungchan’s mouth can’t help but water. But he moves on, smiling when Renjun straightens up and huffs out a small breath, smiling himself.

“I’m so sorry—“

“Don’t apologize,” Sungchan insists, shaking his head. He knows Renjun wouldn’t be late on purpose and would never leave them of his own free will.

Renjun smacks Sungchan on the chest all the same but he doesn’t complain as he’s pulled into a slow kiss, Sungchan’s still warm hands cradling his cheeks. The kiss lingers for a few moments, Sungchan soaking up all of the warmth in Renjun’s lips before Renjun pulls away with a breathless little giggle. “Mm, good morning to me...” 

Sungchan laughs softly and slips the tote bag off of Renjun’s shoulder to carry it back into the kitchen while Renjun shrugs out of his coat and toes his Chelsea boots off at the door. His eyes follow Sungchan as he walks back to the kitchen and he wishes there was another way for them to do this.

Jisung and Sungchan both hate drinking out of blood bags, which doesn’t surprise Renjun because it seems like a very uncomfortable way to eat, but they’re too young to feed from a warm body directly without aid and their sire is being held in a prison cell for making them. It doesn’t make sense to Renjun at all because the idea of taking a sire from his fledglings is incredibly counterintuitive but Johnny apparently had to have announced his intention to turn the boys before he did it.

Renjun doesn’t understand why. He saved Sungchan from the brink of death and it was unfair to give one brother immortality and leave him to watch his younger brother die of old age while he got to be twenty-one forever. To him, it made sense.

But they make due. Renjun is sure they’ll get Johnny back soon.

He won’t acknowledge that he is _hoping_ that they’ll get Johnny back soon, because hope can die. Hope is a frail thing and he doesn’t have time for frailty right now, not when he needs to be strong. Renjun is certain of Johnny’s return because Renjun’s track record for being right is embarrassing to all of his friends. 

“Are you gonna pour them into cups again?” Renjun asks, hopping onto the counter as Sungchan sorts through the blood bags. It’s easier for them to drink but it doesn’t involve their fangs and Renjun feels like that’s a skill they should learn.

Which they would. If there was a vampire around to teach them but Renjun forces himself to digress because Sungchan has gotten very good at picking up on his distress whenever it begins to manifest. It’s too early in the morning for that.

“It’s easier right now,” Sungchan sighs, putting the bags he wasn’t using into the fridge before grabbing the metal reusable cups Renjun bought for this purpose. They have to be replaced regularly but Sungchan kind of likes these ones. They don’t stain quite as bad. “Jisung’s too sleepy to attempt feeding like a normal vampire.”

A gentle knock sounds at the door before Renjun can respond he freezes, eyes narrowing for a moment. It’s a Monday and Jaehyun only visits on Thursdays. Jeno and Chenle both know they can’t just show up at the apartment now and even Xuxi, nearly indestructible Xuxi, keeps his distance to avoid upsetting the newly made vampires’ territory. Jisung is in the doorway of his bedroom and his eyes flick between the older boys nervously. They could ignore it but then whoever is on the other side of the door knocks again and Renjun slides off of the counter to go get the door.

If anything happens, newborn vampires are fast and strong. He’ll be okay.

He turns to take one more look at Sungchan and Jisung and when they both nod, he lifts onto his toes to peek through the peephole and try to get a gauge on the stranger on the other side. The man before him is tall, but not quite as tall as Johnny, Jisung, and Sungchan, and willowy with fluffy blond hair pulled up in a small half ponytail. He’s dressed simply but Renjun knows Balenciaga when he sees it and wonders just who the hell this man is when he takes in the crease in his beautiful brow.

Strangers are bad news for them right now, especially since the sun is barely up, but Renjun cracks the door anyway to take a small chance. “Can I help you?”

“My name is Lee Taeyong,” he says, voice soft and sweet, “and I'm a friend of Johnny’s.” He’s not threatening at all but something about that sentence feels untrue, Renjun just can’t put his finger on what it is yet. Other than that, though, he seems kind and believable but Renjun isn’t feeling generous and trusting right now.

Taeyong has big, sweet eyes that remind Renjun of Sungchan’s and his smile has a way of relaxing the tension that has made a home in Renjun’s shoulders as he stands in the doorway to block his vampires from view. “How do I know we can trust you?”

“I don’t really expect you to trust me, I did just show up on your doorstep at the crack of dawn, but,” Taeyong pulls a necklace out of his sweater, and Renjun’s heart jumps at the ring on it. The band is lovely and simple, engraved with a single rose in the middle, and horribly familiar. It matches the one Johnny wears on his left ring finger. Lee Taeyong is probably actually Taeyong Suh, the husband they’d heard so much about while Sungchan was in the hospital, and Renjun would hate to be where he is right now. It’s not hard to guess that he’s probably just as if not more afraid than they all are. 

“Come in,” Renjun says softly, stepping back from the door to let him in. He carries a chill on his skin that’s not the late autumn cold and Renjun remembers it from Johnny at the hospital. Jaehyun still held some of the warmth of his humanity, despite being turned nearly thirty-six years ago, and Renjun wonders, absently, how long it takes for the warmth to leave. “He’s safe, I promise. I wouldn’t have let him in otherwise,” he says when Jisung hides slightly behind Sungchan. They’re nearly the same height but Jisung looks terribly small when he wants to.

Taeyong lifts the ring quietly but Sungchan doesn’t need to see it to recognize him. He’d seen his picture enough when Renjun and Jisung got kicked out of the hospital and Johnny sat with him a little later than he needed to for him to fall asleep. He’s prettier in person, with his large sparkling eyes and calm demeanor, and Sungchan is comforted by him.

He offers Taeyong a small smile and a wave. “I’ve heard a lot about you,” he says softly and the way Taeyong lights up makes the situation feel a little better. “Um, we just got blood? If you want some?” Jisung waves a little, too, and Taeyong happily returns it before Sungchan’s words register and he refocuses on him.

Taeyong blinks. “You have a supply already?”

Renjun nods. “My friend works at a blood bank and he owes me.” He doesn’t add that Jaehyun will bring extra blood when he visits because it seems like Taeyong has no idea of his involvement and they would like to keep it that way. Taeyong looks impressed with him, though, and something warm grows in Renjun’s chest. “He’s done more criminal shit than this.” It’s not important to delve into with Taeyong, so Renjun doesn’t, but the concern that flashes in the older vampire’s eyes makes his lips twitch.

“That‘s...mildly concerning, but if it works, it works.”

Renjun shrugs.

“But, no, I’m okay. You need it more than me.” Taeyong smiles sweetly and shrugs his coat off to hang it on a hook by the door. He takes a moment to assess Sungchan and Jisung, committing their faces to memory and figuring out their hunger levels as he takes his own boots off.

He seems confused. Renjun expected this.

“You’re human,” he confirms with Renjun, who nods and moves past him to turn on the tea kettle. Taeyong looks like he’s going to need it and Renjun needs the caffeine matcha can offer him. “And they are very new? Johnny couldn’t say much...”

“Two months, nearly,” Sungchan says, fussing with the straw in his cup and following Renjun with his eyes.

Taeyong watches him watch Renjun and smiles, even if it doesn’t meet quite his eyes. “Is it hard for you?”

It’s such a gentle and genuine question bred from the concern Taeyong must have felt from the moment Johnny told him that his two fledglings had been left alone with a human and Renjun finds himself smiling just a bit as he tries to find where Sungchan put his matcha shaker after doing the dishes. They are newly born vampires cared entirely for by a human whose blood pumps right under their noses—quite literally for Sungchan most nights. Taeyong must have feared the worst when he made his way up the stairs to their apartment.

“Is what hard?” Jisung asks, head tilting. His mouth is red from his liquid breakfast and he moves slowly from behind Sungchan to face Taeyong head-on.

“Being around Renjun. Have you ever fed from him?”

The boys shake their heads in unison and Taeyong’s eyes widen in disbelief. 

“Johnny told me not to let them,” Renjun explains, staring pointedly at Sungchan until he came around the counter to take Renjun’s matcha shaker off of the high shelf. Renjun does _not_ know why Sungchan puts it up there when he knows Renjun can’t reach it. It’s a lie, Jaehyun had told him that because Johnny was taken before he could, but what Taeyong didn’t know won’t hurt him. “I was there when they were turned.”

Now Taeyong looks absolutely baffled but there’s something else there–something a little fiercer.

Renjun wonders if he’ll yell at Johnny when they get him back or if he’ll be too excited to have his husband back in his arms. It could really go either way with the confusion knitting Taeyong’s brow as he tries to put the pieces together.

“And they didn’t attack you?”

“Not once.” Renjun inclines his head to the tea kettle and holds out chamomile tea in a quiet offering. Taeyong nods slowly as he makes his way around the kitchen, careful not to get his scent on anything. “Johnny said they’d find comfort in my scent like they would his.”

That fierce look comes back to Taeyong’s eyes as he sits at the kitchen island and Renjun takes a cautious step back. Sungchan rests his hand on Renjun’s waist in quiet support.

“He knew they’d take him when he went to tell them about you.” It’s not a question and Jisung joins them on the other side of the counter to bracket Renjun in safely between his body and Sungchan’s.

Renjun finally has a name for the emotion in Taeyong’s eyes. It’s anger. Hot, righteous anger.

He’s furious that Johnny didn’t tell him his plan to change Sungchan and Jisung. He’s furious he couldn’t have been there for his scent to be considered safe as well. These are his husband’s fledglings and they should be his responsibility, too. It probably hurts him terribly to not have been a part of their creation.

He understands that. He understands why Jaehyun was sworn to secrecy and knows that his decision to not mention Jaehyun is a wise one.

Taeyong says nothing else and Renjun can almost see the older man take those feelings and put them in a box. It’ll be dealt with later. He knows that feeling well and licks his lips while he tries to figure out what to do next.

“They’ve been good,” Renjun promises to bring Taeyong back to the moment. The vampire blinks but his blank expression softens to his previous gentle smile even if his shoulders are still impossibly tense.

Taeyong notes the way both fledglings are tucked around Renjun, bracketing him from Taeyong who, while friendly, is an interloper in their home. He had shown an emotion so negative that their territorial instincts had taken over but they hadn’t _acted_ to hurt him or remove him from the situation. He can tell they have been good and he wonders just what kind of person this little human is to have managed that all by himself.

Slowly, Taeyong relaxes, and Jisung inches back over to him to sit on the chair beside him.

Jisung figures that he’s probably been lonely with Johnny away for so long and offers him a sweet smile. It takes a moment for them both to adjust to one another, for Jisung to welcome Taeyong into his space and for Taeyong to take up the offer, but they end up falling into a comfortable balance easily. It’s not long before Taeyong gently strokes over Jisung’s hair, a soft smile on his face, and Renjun thinks everything will be okay for now.

He knows why Johnny and Jaehyun didn’t tell Taeyong when he sees the way Taeyong dotes on Jisung and asks him how he’s doing. Taeyong is one of those people Renjun thinks was just meant to be a parent, something vampirism took from him all those years ago.

Something that being in the room with Johnny and Renjun when the boys were turned would have taken from him again.

It probably doesn’t make it hurt any less to be kept in the dark about the existence of his husband’s fledglings, but at least Taeyong has them while Johnny is gone.

At least they’re not all alone anymore. At least they can lean on each other.

Sungchan, however, doesn’t leave Renjun’s side, hand warm on his hip as Renjun makes his matcha to the quiet sound of Taeyong and Jisung talking just a few feet away. It is an odd change of pace, to have Sungchan standing beside him protectively, willing to act to protect him when Renjun had been doing it for as long as he could remember. But he has to admit that it’s nice.

“Kiss,” Sungchan mumbles as Renjun pours his tea over ice and pouts when he gets a firm eye roll. “I haven’t taken a sip yet. Kiss.” Renjun turns around to look at him, brow quirking up until Sungchan obediently opens his mouth. It’s not red and Renjun lifts his chin to catch Sungchan’s lips in a quick and easy kiss, hands resting lightly on his chest before he pulls away to smile at him. 

He doesn’t see the thoughtful look Taeyong sends them as he makes Taeyong’s tea in a lovely little porcelain teacup. He can’t see the envy and fondness in his eyes and by the time they turn around to face him, it’s melted away into another smile.

Once Taeyong and Renjun have their tea, they reconvene in the living room and Jisung practically plasters himself to Taeyong’s side, hungry for attention.

Renjun realizes that they haven’t really seen any of their friends for the last month and a half at least. Facetime isn’t the same even if he knows that Jisung and Chenle have fallen asleep on the phone more than once. He wonders if they can fix that now that there’s real help.

Sungchan and Renjun take the loveseat across from the couch, Sungchan perched on the arm, and for a moment they’re all silent while they figure out what to say to each other.

“Well,” Taeyong starts, holding his cup in both hands to absorb some of its warmth as he weighs his words carefully. He has another ring on his finger, braided gold and glinting in the warm light of the living room.

Renjun wonders where it came from and why he wears it on his finger but keeps his wedding ring around his neck. 

“As you’re Johnny’s fledglings, you are his, and by extension _my_ responsibility.” The words are kind but they are also painful for him to get out.

“So does that mean we’re like your kids?” Sungchan asks, reusable straw between his teeth. He’s using the straw to teethe and knows that they’ll have to throw this straw out soon from him chewing it half to death but Renjun doesn’t blame him because his gums ache most days.

“In a way.” Taeyong’s smile is so kind and so warm. His energy is comforting, much like Johnny’s is, and the room aches with their shared loss. “Sire is another word for father and while I’m not yours, Johnny is. And he _is_ my husband so...you’re kind of our kids? But only if you want to be.”

Jisung considers Taeyong before looking across the room at Sungchan. It’s been so long since they’ve been able to consider anyone a parental figure and while they don’t know Taeyong well, Sungchan can tell that he is an easy man to love and would love them like they were his own sons. It’s not a hard decision to make, really.

“Do you have kids, hyung?” Jisung asks, voice low and careful. Taeyong shakes his head as he brings his tea up to his lips. “Well, we don’t have parents so I think it’s a pretty even exchange, right? You get two sons and we get two dads!”

The smile that lights up Taeyong’s face could keep Seoul lit for at least two years.

“Yes, I think it is.” And it’s as simple as that. Renjun wishes it was as simple as Taeyong and Johnny together helping Sungchan and Jisung through this but this has never been about what Renjun wants. This has always been about what Sungchan and Jisung need and it always will be. Renjun comes secondary to that, even if it’s only to himself.

And so they talk. Renjun tries not to answer every question that Taeyong has for the boys, tries to break the habit he formed in the hospital before Johnny was assigned to Sungchan and no one would listen to them, and succeeds for the most part. He sips his matcha through his own straw and listens to Taeyong talk.

Teething seems to be one of the worst parts of being a newborn vampire. It’s irritating and uncomfortable and nearly impossible to stop without help.

Help, before Taeyong, was Renjun offering his arm to ease the tension or simply stroking the brothers’ hair while they cried.

Help before Taeyong was also Renjun miserably pinching his fingers behind their jaws to force their fangs back into their gums to pained cries and floods of tears. Jaehyun had talked him through it over the phone, voice just as pained in sympathy for Jisung’s wail and the sniffling he could still hear from Sungchan curled up a little bit away from the phone.

He tried not to do it more often than necessary. He hopes he won’t have to do it ever again.

Taeyong suggests that Renjun stop letting Jisung chew on him for his own health, despite protests that Jisung has never broken the skin and the insistence that Jisung never will, and look into some actual modern solutions. Sungchan latches onto this idea like a dog with a bone and Renjun rolls his eyes in preparation for the foolishness that is to come from them.

“Like a teething toy?” Sungchan suggests.

His grin is positively shit-eating and Renjun sips his tea quietly to hide his smile. Sungchan is _also_ teething, which is why he’s chewing his straw to death above Renjun’s head, but if he can make fun of his little brother, he’s certainly going to do it.

“You’re a fucking asshole—“ Jisung whines, putting his cup down and revealing his own chewed on straw. Renjun’s going to have to throw it out once he’s done. 

“Language,” Taeyong tuts and lightly pops Jisung on the mouth but there’s a fond little smile on his lips. He absolutely was meant to be a father.

“You teethe too!” Jisung, a brat until the end, continues as if nothing happened. He’s pouting though, so Renjun supposes he feels appropriately chastised by his new father figure.

“Maybe so,” Sungchan counters, pointing his cup at Jisung, “but _you_ teethe way worse than I do.”

“Boys,” Renjun says slowly, patting Sungchan’s thigh. “It's not the oppression Olympics. Both of your mouths hurt. I’ll order you both teething rings.” Sungchan and Jisung start complaining immediately but when Renjun doesn’t fold, Sungchan huffs and sticks his straw back into his mouth.

Taeyong watches them bicker fondly before allowing himself a brief look around the apartment. It’s nice for something that belongs to three boys under thirty and it looks cozy. It’s clean and there are pictures on the wall of the boys and their friends. Two bedrooms from what he can tell.

He considers Renjun and Sungchan carefully.

If he asks them about their sleeping situation, and by default their sex lives, they won’t be honest with Jisung around but Taeyong is okay with waiting. He turns the subject away from teething before the brothers can come to blows, which seems likely, and hums just a little.

He’s surprised when all three heads turn to him expectantly.

Huh. 

“How often do you need to feed?” He asks once he shakes the surprise off, head tilting to the side.

Sungchan holds the cup in his hand up and gives it a small shake. There’s a light slosh of liquid in it and Taeyong bites back a smile at the way Renjun’s nose wrinkles. “Like...six of these a day?”

“How many ounces is that?”

“Like? Thirty? Maybe twenty-four?”

“So somewhere between...144 and 180 ounces a day... You have...very small appetites for fledglings.” Taeyong is actually somewhat concerned for a moment but then he realizes that there is a human in their house. His scent is most likely enough to dull their hunger.

He doesn’t think they curb their feeding for his stomach or that they curb it at all, actually.

Renjun, Taeyong finally decides, is a phenomenal little human. He has two fledglings on a strict feeding schedule and goes to the blood bank twice a week, but can get a third delivery of his friends at the bank can sneak some away for him. He makes sure they get air. They supplement some of the blood with human food and keep in contact with some of their friends.

Renjun monitors them carefully, knows almost all of the signs of hunger off of the top of his head just from watching his vampires.

It’s wonderful how he’s managed this all within the short time he’s had to do it, but Taeyong wonders how much of it comes from being at Sungchan’s side, worrying for his health.

He doesn’t have to anymore, but it’s a hard habit to shake.

Taeyong knows the feeling well and also knows why Johnny did what he did without consulting anyone about it.

Johnny, soft-hearted fool he was, saw a mirror of Taeyong at his own bedside a little over one hundred years later and did what their sire did for them to these young boys. Renjun is probably only still human because one fledgling is difficult enough and Johnny had made two at once.

That will have to change soon, but Taeyong sets that aside for now. They have time to decide.

“Taeyong hyung,” Renjun asks after the conversation moves on again, setting his teacup aside. “You’re avoiding an obvious question.”

Taeyong supposes he is and once again marvels at Renjun’s cleverness. “Will you ask it, then?” he prompts, tilting his cup in Renjun’s direction. 

Renjun blinks slowly, leaning back against Sungchan. Sungchan kisses the top of his head and rests his cheek on his crown, sleepy and fond. Taeyong envies them.

“You need to watch them. We don’t have enough room here—our couch isn’t all that comfortable and Jisung is terrible to share a bed with. Do you want them to move in with you?”

Jisung frowns, sitting up straight while Sungchan looks at Renjun in disbelief. “What? Hyung, we’re not leaving you. We can’t do that to you.”

“Babe, you can’t be serious,” Sungchan says, gently pushing his shoulder and frowning when he doesn’t get a real response out of Renjun. “Renjun? _Renjun_.”

Renjun doesn’t acknowledge them, simply stares Taeyong down and steeples his fingers in front of him. “I’ll ask again—do you want them to move in with you? You can be honest with me, I won’t be upset.” The boys will, though.

Taeyong takes a slow sip of his tea before setting it back down in the saucer. He doesn’t break Renjun’s gaze once.

Taeyong can tell that Renjun has come to the conclusion that he is not Taeyong’s responsibility. That he is not Taeyong’s—not _Johnny’s_. He’s not a vampire but is a human who can take care of himself without anyone’s help. It would hurt him to be separated from the boys but Taeyong knows that if he thinks that it would be better for them, that he would give them up to Taeyong because _he_ isn’t Taeyong’s responsibility.

He couldn’t be more incorrect about that. Even if Taeyong wanted to just take the boys and leave Renjun, he wouldn’t. Johnny would never forgive him and Taeyong doesn’t think he’d be able to forgive himself.

“I wouldn’t want them without you,” Taeyong says, holding his cup in his lap. He doesn’t smile because Renjun doesn’t want to see him smile, after all. He wants Taeyong’s cards down and Taeyong splays them readily. Renjun needs honesty and Taeyong is happy to give it to him.

“The day Johnny turned them, he had you in the room. That day you became as much his responsibility as Sungchan and Jisung. That makes you my responsibility. It makes you mine. I intend to take care of you as if you are mine, but only if you’ll let me.”

Renjun finally blinks and lets the tension bleed out of him. Sungchan holds him tightly, mouth pressed to his shoulder, and Renjun leans their heads together. “I’ll miss this little place.”

“We can always keep it for you, if that is what you want.” Renjun isn’t quite sure that he does.

•❅──────✧❅✦❅✧──────❅•

The house that Johnny and Taeyong call home is far bigger than two people have any right living in on their own. Taeyong has been in a big, empty townhouse by himself for two months, waiting desperately for word about the safety of his husband only to get word of two fledglings.

Renjun can’t imagine how awful this has been for Taeyong. How tired he is. How much he wants Johnny back despite already adoring these pieces of him. Renjun can’t blame him, if it were him, he thinks that he’d be the same way.

“It must have been quiet,” he says softly as Jisung moves forward to explore the house, gasping as a little dog runs up to him. She’s a pretty tricolor pomeranian and hardly looks older than a puppy and Jisung has a tiny fear of dogs but he looks like he loves her already.

“Her name is Ruby,” Taeyong says, hands on his hips as he smiles softly. “She’s two years old. It _has_ been quiet. Friends have visited but it’s...not the same.”

Renjun imagines nothing would ever be the same. Taeyong wants his husband even if he loves his friends’ attempts to ease his pain. Jisung and Sungchan are making friends with Ruby and Renjun rests a small hand on Taeyong’s arm. “We’re here now and we’re not exactly loud, but...”

Taeyong smiles, resting his hand over Renjun’s. “Anything is better than silence and I’m so happy that you’re here and you’re safe.”

They watch the boys with Ruby before Taeyong speaks again. “I noticed you two shared a room back at the apartment. You can share one again, if you like,” Taeyong whispers and watches as Sungchan picks ruby up to shower her in little kisses.

Renjun hates being the only person in the room who can blush when all three vampires turn to him when the flush rises on his cheeks. It’s embarrassing. He hates it here.

He doesn’t, not really, but it’s still horribly inconvenient to be read like an open book when he can’t do the same.

“Thank you,” Renjun says softly and plucks at the sleeve of his sweater absently.

“Though,” Taeyong says idly, “I don’t know how he does it. How he has you close and doesn’t hunger.”

Renjun has never really thought about that before, the difficulty Sungchan must face.

But Sungchan looks up at him and smiles with soft eyes and he doesn’t mind. He wants to talk about it eventually but not at this moment.

“Neither do I,” he says to Taeyong and scuffs his boots against the floor. Taeyong gently pats his shoulder.

“Boys,” he finally says and waves Jisung and Sungchan over. “I’ll show you where the rooms are so you can pick your own.” 


	2. ii.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The worst part about the vampiric government being a bureaucracy is that, like all bureaucracies, they are exceptionally useless and self-serving little bastards.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> meet the shitty vampire bureacracy and kun, doyoung, and yuta.

The worst part about the vampiric government being a bureaucracy is that, like all bureaucracies, they are exceptionally useless and self-serving little bastards. It’s not Johnny’s first time standing before them but it is his first time doing it _alone_. He won’t drag Jaehyun down with him but he misses having him and Yuta at his side to be yelled at by the council. Kun and Doyoung are the only members of the thirteen strong council that Johnny trusts, and with good reason considering all they’ve been through together, but he can’t expect them to be of much help with the trouble he’s gotten himself into this time.

Unfortunately, Johnny’s not terribly repentant for what he’s done. He regrets nothing, not even keeping Taeyong in the dark because now he has the boys without all of the complications.

Well, without the typical complications. Johnny has a lot of repenting to do with Taeyong _and_ the boys but the council is getting none of that energy out of him.

Johnny taps his fingers against his biceps absently as he listens to another round of accusations from the council. It’s a colossal effort not to roll his eyes but he manages. They’ve been here for forty-five minutes already and Johnny wants to go back to the bedroom they stashed him in nearly a month ago. He has no idea why they keep dragging him into the council room to repeat all of the same nonsense they have been spouting since the first day he came but if they insist on repeating himself, he’s going to through his politeness out of the window and summon all of the attitude he keeps hidden to be a kind ear to his patients.

“You turned a twenty-one-year-old and his nineteen-year-old brother.” Johnny remembers this particular idiot from the last time Yuta was censured for turning his dog–which Johnny will admit was not the best decision he’s ever supported in his long life–and knows he will repeat himself until he’s tired of hearing his own voice or someone stops him. He never tires of hearing his own voice.

“I could have sworn we covered this,” Johnny says and rolls his neck to crack it. God, that’s satisfying but it’s also apparently terribly disrespectful if the faces some of the council members pull is any real indication.

Doyoung gives him a sharp look in warning but Johnny’s patience is running thin and he knows Doyoung doesn’t actually care if he cracks his neck or not. But then Doyoung slowly lifts his right hand to rest his chin on it and Johnny looks down at the ring around his index finger and most of the fight leaves him in a moment, exhaling a quiet sigh. He wants to go home but most importantly, he needs to get back to Taeyong and the boys.

“You haven’t told us why.” This is another familiar voice and Johnny lets his eyes travel over to the petite woman at the end of the council seat. Sunny, he thinks her name is. She’s not the worst member of the council members that Johnny hates by far but she’s still insufferable for dragging him through this shitshow week after week.

It’s terribly difficult to explain why to a group of people Johnny simply doesn’t trust. His and Taeyong’s turning was registered in secret with Yuta and Kun but Johnny and Taeyong’s sire is long dead and cannot advocate for him. He cannot explain the state Johnny had been in when turned. Cannot explain how loyal Taeyong had been at his bedside. Cannot explain the motivation Johnny felt at an instinctual level to give these boys another chance at life.

In turn, it’s difficult for Johnny to explain why when he saw Sungchan’s immune system torn apart by pneumonia with Jisung and Renjun keeping careful vigil over him, he felt the same compulsion to save them. He has no interest in reliving his pain to the council.

“I saw myself in them,” he says very slowly and loosens the tightness of the cross of his arms. He sees the tension in Doyoung’s shoulders and Kun holds his jaw tightly.

They know. Doyoung was _there_ in the aftermath. He’s not sure they’ll stop the rest of the council from pressing but he hopes so. Despite how much trouble Johnny causes on a regular basis he knows that they love him and they do understand.

He’s grateful that he didn’t have to explain it to them.

“But not the boy’s lover?”

“Three fledglings at once?” Johnny counters, brow lifting into his fringe. “I'm bold but even I know that it would have been impossible to manage them all. I have full intentions to turn him, however.” There is an affirmative hum running through the council and Johnny is grateful for common sense finally making an appearance among these absolute headasses. He’s _tired_.

“Assuming we let you out.”

Johnny’s jaw works slowly but he can tell that Kun has had enough. None of them have respect for the head of the council but this is, in fact, getting fucking ridiculous.

“You have no reason to _keep_ him. Separating him from two fledglings hardly three weeks after making them could have started a murder spree because he couldn’t send word to his husband to help them,” Kun snaps and some of the council members lean back at the venom in his tone. He’s not a soft-spoken man by any means but his anger is still unsettling when he lets it out.

“We have no proof they haven’t gone off the rails,” one council member points out and Doyoung leans over the table to stare at him.

“Do _you_ see a trail of bodies across the city? _I_ certainly don’t. They are too young to be capable of hiding that level of carnage, even with help. They are clearly not off the rails and you are being purposefully ignorant of that fact to drag this farce of a trial on.” Doyoung speaks with the force of heavy rain and it is not hard to see why he and Yuta are terrifying together.

Johnny finally lets his shoulders relax with that information. No one had given him any word of how the boys were progressing but Renjun must have the boys reined in tight in his absence.

He’s grateful for that. It’s saved all of their lives and countless more innocent ones.

“I would like more confirmation...” Sunny is nervous, as she should be with Kun and Doyoung’s fury pulling a cloud over the room.

Kun sighs softly and looks to the council head. The man is somewhat fond of Johnny but he’s in a tight spot here. Kun doesn’t quite care because he could have stopped this when it first happened by simply approving the retroactive request. It was an emergency and it had been done twice before–there shouldn’t be this much of a problem and he knows that it only is because it’s Johnny. “I’ll go visit. See how they’re all holding up. I will be honest if it’s poor and you can act accordingly.”

Kun being married to Johnny’s very best friend will not save Johnny. They all know this. It wouldn’t have saved Jaehyung either which is why Johnny left him out of his confession. Kun doesn’t deserve to lose his husband because of Johnny and Jaehyun doesn’t deserve to be punished for Johnny’s actions regardless of if he was there or not.

The head of the council looks like he’s swallowed something sour and Johnny holds breath to await the verdict. “Fine. You and Doyoung will supervise them for one month and if they are truly tame then there won’t be a problem.”

One month. One more month away from Taeyong. It makes Johnny’s stomach sink but he also knows that there is no other option if he wants to get back to his husband and his fledglings.

Kun and Doyoung both look ready to argue but Johnny gives a small shake of his head. It’s the best option they have even if they all hate it.

They get to talk to Johnny after the council is dismissed and Johnny clings to the tight hug Doyoung pulls him into. He smells like Yuta and their fledglings and he misses his own family even more but this will have to do. It’s comforting and when Doyoung starts to sway lightly with him, he doesn’t fight it and closes his eyes to bask in the warmth of one of his best friends.

“A fucking _month_?” Kun hisses.

He looks furious and Johnny doesn’t blame him. He gets a rare Kun hug next and tucks his face into his shoulder to savor it. Kun pulls him closer and gently rubs his back to give him the physical attention he’s so desperately missed. “It’s fucking outrageous. What will we learn in a month that we can’t in two weeks?”

“That they hate me,” Johnny answers seriously. They don’t disagree because they really _can’t_ disagree.

Doyoung sighs and crosses his arms, tipping his head back. “I’ll come to check in as much as I can. I’m sure they’re in the manor now so they’re in excellent hands.”

Johnny doesn’t doubt it but he also doesn’t want Renjun’s hard work discounted. “They were in good hands before.”

“A human’s hands,” Kun says and Johnny clicks his tongue at him. 

“They didn’t kill anyone, did they?” Johnny points out from his hiding place in Kun’s shoulder. Kun gently cradles the back of his head to keep him there and Johnny’s whole body relaxes at the comfort.

They can’t argue with that.

“Take care of Taeyong, please,” he begs after a moment, pulling away from them both.

Doyoung smiles and squeezes Johnny’s shoulder. Johnny knows that Doyoung would never let anything happen to Taeyong but he needs to hear it–he needs to be sure. “Of course. You’ll be home in no time.”

Johnny certainly hopes so. A month has never sounded so long before.

•❅──────✧❅✦❅✧──────❅•

“Oh, so they’re off the fucking rails,” Yuta says when Doyoung comes home. He’s draped over one of their couches like an oversized house cat and Doyoung smacks his legs to get them off of the couch. He doesn’t move because he loves to be contrary, even with his own husband. “A _month_? Do they not care about the kids? Do they not care about _Taeyong?_ ”

Doyoung sighs. He’s almost positive that none of the council members outside of himself and Kun even care about what’s happening to Taeyong during this separation. That’s a mistake but that’s not Doyoung’s business. If Taeyong wants to show up to the council house and flip it over, Doyoung is simply going to leave before he gets started.

“No sire has been separated from fledglings for an extended period of time in recent memory so they are operating on the assumption that it won’t harm them.” He rubs his forehead as Yuta reaches up for him, taking his hand and pulling him down to sit on the couch and lessen his burden as much as he can.

“But it most likely will.” Yuta narrows his eyes and considers their options. “Have you considered bringing them some of Johnny’s blood? Get him what he needs and he could draw it himself whenever he gets bored.”

Doyoung has not but it’s not a bad idea. Fledglings typically feed off of their sires regularly those first few months of their new lives and both boys have been deprived of that. He’ll talk to Kun about it but he already knows the older vampire will agree to the plan; Kun is not a monster, just a little ornery. “Has Taeyong called today?” He finally asks, tilting his head back.

Yuta knows he’s exhausted and wishes that he could be of more help to ease his husband’s stress. “They’re all settled at the manor. Apparently, they’re at the level of year old fledglings.” Which means they’re in a better state than their own fledglings but Donghyuck’s unpredictability amuses Yuta as much as it exasperates Doyoung.

“Under a human’s care? How do they not want to feed on him constantly?” Doyoung remembers how awful his hunger was when he was first turned and how he craved Yuta’s blood more than anything on this earth. Yuta shrugs, moving to melt into Doyoung’s lap, who accepts him readily and cards his fingers through his husband’s hair.

“Sungchan, the older one, shares a bed with the human. Yong thinks the constant exposure has pretty much conditioned them to not crave him.” Taeyong is rarely wrong about anything when it comes to blood and how it works through vampire systems but it is still a little odd to think about a human being able to rein in two newborn vampires without turning up on the streets with his throat ripped out.

“...What a thought,” Doyoung muses and looks off to the side when he hears Donghyuck and Shotaro start to stir in their rooms. It’s late for a nap but they’re grown adults and only children in the vampire sense so Doyoung leaves them be. “Kun wants to give them a week to adjust to the manor and Taeyong before we just assert ourselves and upset their balance.”

Yuta hums, resting his head on Doyoung’s shoulder. “Plenty of time to get enough of Johnny’s blood to keep them for a week or so. And for Taeyong.”

They certainly do need to get some for Taeyong. Doyoung plans to make an appeal for Taeyong to yell at his husband in his nice council cell. God only knows if it’ll get approved but he has to try for his best friend. He nuzzles his face into Yuta’s hair and sighs softly. He’s spoken to Taeyong frequently but he knows that he can’t really understand what he’s going through right now. He doesn’t even know what he would do in the same situation and tucks his face into Yuta’s hair in an attempt to push the very thought of something happening to him away. 

It’s likely given how reckless Yuta is and Doyoung does not want to think about it–now or ever.

“You’re overthinking,” Yuta whispers, touching his finger to Doyoung’s nose. “Johnny is well, the boys seem stable and they’re with Taeyong, the human is safe, and you’re going to help them. All will be well.”

“It’s not like you to be optimistic,” Doyoung teases and kisses him.

“With you like this, someone has to be,” Yuta mumbles against his lips before sinking into the kiss and throwing his leg over Doyoung’s lap to get comfortable. The boys are waking up but they both know better than to interrupt.

•❅──────✧❅✦❅✧──────❅•

It’s not very long until Taeyong starts to notice clear signs of longing in Sungchan and Jisung. He thinks he might be imagining it but he catches Renjun with a furrowed brow and his hands on his hips watching Sungchan stare out of the window.

Taeyong learned quickly that this has been a habit Sungchan has always had but he seems to be...waiting for someone. He’ll move around, leave the window entirely, but he always makes it back and sits with his legs to his chest and waits.

Taeyong starts to sit with him.

They don’t talk about the pull they both feel. They just sit at the window and hope to see a familiar head of warm brown hair walking down the street to the house.

He doesn’t come. He never comes but they sit at the window every day waiting for him all the same.

Maybe one day they’ll see him and they will be there to greet him and let him know that he was missed dearly.

They’ve been doing this for the better part of a week when Renjun has seemingly had enough and stomps up to them both and grabs their hands. “You’re not doing this,” he says, frowning. Sungchan’s hand tightens around Renjun’s and he brings it to his cheek as he tries to stay where he is, parked right on the window seat waiting for Johnny to come home.

They don’t ask what ‘this’ is but Taeyong almost wants to fight the small human to stay perched by the window in silent vigil. He feels a little better knowing that Sungchan wants Johnny as much as he does even if it is in a different capacity. But Renjun is right.

This isn’t helping. This isn’t healthy.

The doorbell rings and Taeyong leaves Renjun to fuss at Sungchan who doesn’t fight but pouts something fierce. Taeyong has noticed they never really argue but simply pout and stare at each other until someone yields. The results are surprisingly even.

“You are not a little lost puppy,” Renjun says despite the lost puppy eyes Sungchan is giving him. He’s seen them for the better part of twelve years and while he’s not wholly immune, he does have a tolerance for them. “You cannot sit at the window waiting for him to come home like Ruby waits for Taeyong.”

Like how Ruby waits at the door for Johnny, too, and only curls up in her little bed when she’s sure that he’s not coming home that day. Rinse and repeat. 

Sungchan pouts but sighs, leaning against Renjun when Renjun pulls him into a hug and strokes over his hair. He doesn’t say anything but admits defeat as Renjun scratches lightly at his scalp. The door opens with a small gasp and Sungchan stands up quickly, wrapping his arm around Renjun as they look at the door. There’s no way it’s Johnny, Sungchan would have been able to smell him from down the block, but Taeyong knows whoever is on the other side of the door and is very happy to see them. 

Renjun rests his hand on Sungchan’s as he takes in the tall stranger in the doorway and the way he pulls Taeyong into his arms to hold him tight, rocking him gently in a hug and pressing a kiss to his temple.

If Taeyong trembles in his grip, none of them judge him.

Renjun sees the braided gold ring on the stranger’s finger as he holds him close and the dots connect quickly. They are best friends for eternity. It sounds very nice and Renjun wonders what that’s like. 

When Taeyong pulls his friend inside, Renjun notices that he’s not alone and Sungchan’s arm tightens slightly around his waist. There are two boys around their ages behind the stranger and they don’t seem terribly threatening so Renjun is very curious about them.

They’re peeking curiously around him and Sungchan lifts the hand that’s not resting on Renjun’s hip in a small wave that's returned enthusiastically by both of them. Taeyong leads them in and introduces them as Doyoung, the tall stranger, Donghyuck, and Shotaro, his fledglings and introduces Sungchan and Renjun when he realizes that Jisung isn’t downstairs. He’s probably napping like he always does when he’s hungry but is too sleepy to go downstairs to get blood.

“Jisung!” Renjun calls, turning to walk partially up the stairs. Sungchan sighs and follows after him. It’s not that he doesn’t trust these three strangers, he just wants Renjun as close to him as possible while new people are in their home. “Jung Jisung! Get down here!”

Doyoung blinks and covers his mouth to hide his smile as Donghyuck laughs outright. “I understand how he’s kept them both in line now.” For Renjun to be the shortest man in the room and the only human, he’s commanding the space as if he belongs there. Doyoung thinks that he does.

Taeyong laughs softly and squeezes Doyoung’s hand. “You haven’t seen anything yet.”

Jisung comes down the stairs rubbing his eyes and yawning softly. He takes in the strangers carefully before taking a firm place beside Renjun and Sungchan, tucked slightly behind Renjun and keeping his eyes on the strangers.

This...Taeyong did not expect. The boys hadn't been territorial with him. But then again...

Taeyong smelled like Johnny. The boys knew Johnny, knew of _him,_ and knew he would not be any threat to Renjun.

But these were three strangers standing a few feet away from their human. Away from Sungchan’s _lover_ and they are unpredictable at best and a danger at worse. It’s a difficult situation to gauge, Taeyong hasn’t known the boys for long but he does know Donghyuck and Shotaro and knows they’re harmless. There’s not enough time for Taeyong to say any of this before the boys start moving and everything happens very fast.

Donghyuck bounces forward before Doyoung can grab him, a sweet little smile on his lips, and Sungchan bares his fangs in a growl as his instincts take over before anyone can move. It’s admittedly somewhat amusing to see Sungchan act in defense of his lover from being greeted by someone new but something in it makes Taeyong’s heart ache. It’s a very Johnny behavior and Taeyong misses him even more.

Renjun and Jisung grab Sungchan as Donghyuck stumbles back against Shotaro's chest and is wrapped into a back hug, Shotaro gently rubbing a small circle into his chest to calm him down.

Taeyong opens his mouth to try to smooth out the situation but Renjun moves faster and flicks Sungchan right on his nose. It’s a clean hit and Doyoung can tell that it hurts by the way Jisung whistles in sympathy and Sungchan flinches back in pain. 

The young fledgling whines, hands coming up to cover his nose. Taeyong can't see his mouth but he knows Sungchan is pouting. "Ow! Renjun, what the fuck?"

"What the fuck? Sungchan, you just hissed at someone because he came just a little too close. He's not going to eat me, idiot!"

"I didn't-" Sungchan starts but his shoulders are lifting up to his ears in embarrassment. “That’s not what happened…”

"You did," Taeyong says fondly, lips curled into a tiny grin. "You _did_ think he was going to eat him and that is exactly what happened. You were defending your mate and your territory." The fact that Sungchan considers the house his territory enough to try to protect it warms Taeyong’s heart and he tries not to smile too wide at it.

"I promise that I’m not going to eat your boyfriend," Donghyuck says with a small pout of his own, leaning heavily against Shotaro's chest. "I just wanted to say 'hi'! To _all_ of you!"

"...Sorry." Sungchan sighs and bows to Donghyuck, who pulls away from Shotaro to do the same. "It was instinct and I didn’t mean it..."

"A strong one," Doyoung laughs, wrapping his arm around Taeyong's shoulder. "He's like Johnny when we first met Yuta." Johnny wasn’t able to really hiss then because he was still human but if he could have, Doyoung is certain that he _would_ have. 

"Oh, very much so," Taeyong agrees and when he’s certain a fight won’t break out, he leads Doyoung into the kitchen.

Renjun gives Sungchan and Jisung a warning look and both boys take a step back for him to approach Shotaro and Donghyuck. They must be older than Sungchan and Jisung, both vampire and normal age-wise, but he sees Donghyuck's nose twitch when he comes close.

He's still human and Donghyuck is still a relatively new vampire but Renjun is good at being careful.

He learns that they're twenty-two, like Renjun is, and have been vampires for almost eleven months now. Their relationship is a mystery to Renjun but is also every bit of none of his business so when they settle down together in the living room to play Mario Kart, he doesn't ask. They didn’t introduce themselves as boyfriends but they orbit each other much like Jisung and Chenle did. Renjun hopes that they can figure that out sooner rather than later.

“If you play as Princess Peach, it means you’re a bad bitch,” Donghyuck says at the character selection screen and Renjun clicks the classic Peach option just to hear him whine. It’s hard for Renjun to not smile and he instead makes himself comfortable against Sungchan. “Why would you do that!”

Shotaro giggles and happily selects the Animal Crossing villager with no complaints from anyone. “There are three different versions of Peach, Hyuckie. You don’t _need_ to have that one.”

“But that is specifically Princess Peach, Taro!”

“If you can’t be a baddie without playing as Princess Peach,” Sungchan says as he picks Link, “then that says more about you than it does the character. A bad bitch can be a bad bitch no matter who they pick to play in Mario Kart.”

Shotaro moves the conversation on to stop Donghyuck from complaining further and smiles over at Jisung. “Jisung-ah, who are you going to pick?”

“Toad,” Jisung answers readily, sitting upside down on the couch with no adults around to stop him.

“A man of taste,” Shotaro agrees, nodding his head sagely as Donghyuck picks Baby Peach and they move on to the customization screen. 

They're easy to get along with even if Renjun can tell that Donghyuck has a tendency to dance on people's nerves. They're loud, but they also don't know how to be quiet, and Doyoung gently pulls Taeyong into the kitchen while the boys are distracted.

It doesn't take Taeyong long to start to break with Sungchan and Jisung in a different room. 

He wants Johnny. That's _all_ he wants right now and they're all poor substitutes no matter how much he may love them. The tears make his eyes shine and he tries to cover his face to hide them. 

"Yongie, come here..." Doyoung sighs, pulling him against his chest and closing his eyes tightly as he feels tears start to soak his shoulder. It’s so hard to see Taeyong in pain like this. "He's okay, I promise. I _just_ saw him."

"I almost want him to suffer," Taeyong sniffles, fists tight in Doyoung's shirt. It’s not hard to know how little Taeyong means that because the one thing Taeyong cannot stand for the life of him is the prospect of Johnny in any discomfort or pain. "But I know he misses us as much as we miss him and that...that has to do..."

"It must for now," Doyoung agrees and gently tilts Taeyong's face up, wiping his tears away with gentle fingers. "Three more weeks until we can bring him home."

"Three weeks too _long_ , Doyoung. Why would they make his stay _longer_?”

"I don't disagree and I wish I knew," Doyoung sighs and presses a soft kiss to his forehead. "But Yuta had an idea."

"Yuta has _ideas_?" Taeyong laughs, wiping under his eyes with a small smile. Yuta is incredibly intelligent, they both know this, but he has a tendency to willfully not think in order to not be bothered. No one can really blame him for this in the grand scheme of things.

"And some good ones, actually."

"My, time has changed him." Doyoung snorts but he can’t disagree. His husband is known for having some of the worst ideas any of them have ever seen. It’s a part of his charm. 

"I had one idea of my own, though," Doyoung says, letting Taeyong out of his grip to open his bag and pull out the thick cream sweater Johnny had been wearing the day before. "Snuck this out for you." It’s one of his favorites and has his scent so deeply embedded in it that even had he not been wearing it yesterday that it would help Taeyong cope if only a little. 

Taeyong's smile is watery as he pulls the sweater on and buries his face in it.

He keeps the knit over his nose but he doesn't cry, simply lets the fresh dose of Johnny's scent wash over him and soothe his nerves. "You're a genius..." he whispers, blinking the tears from his eyes with a small hiccup. "Thank you..." Doyoung has been familiar with their scent dependency for as long as they’ve been vampires and he knows that being away from each other’s scents has to be painful. “Can you bring him something of mine?”

"Of course, Yongie. It's the least I could do, but not all."

Taeyong's brow furrows for a moment before his eyes widen at the insulated pouch Doyoung pulls from the bag next. He could smell Johnny even though the pouch was airtight and he curls his fingers into the sleeves of the sweater where they cover his hands. "Is that...?"

"Yuta's idea. But yes, it should be enough for the three of you to keep you comfortable for another week or so."

Jisung makes a small noise in the door. His eyes are on the sweater and when Taeyong opens his arms for the boy, he folds into his hug to press his face into the sweater. Taeyong rubs his back and presses a soft kiss to his cheek. Jisung doesn’t cry but the shine in his eyes tells Doyoung that he wants to very badly and probably would if Doyoung wasn’t there to witness it. "It's alright..." Taeyong soothes, holding Jisung’s head to him and resting his cheek atop the crown of his head.

Jisung nods a little before turning his attention to the pouch and making another small noise. "What's that?" he asks, clinging to Taeyong like an oversized koala for his comfort and to rub Johnny’s scent into his own skin. 

"Johnny's blood," Doyoung answers and goes to find one of the cups Taeyong told him the boys favored when Jisung's eyes flash. "Hungry?"

"Starving... Should I get Channie?" Jisung follows Doyoung, biting his lip and trying to keep his distance. He’s a shy little thing and Doyoung offers him a small smile. Jisung is curled against him in an instant and the unfairness of their situation hits Doyoung like a ton of bricks again. 

He won’t tell Johnny about this. He has seen his friend cry enough in his room.

Doyoung shakes his head. The pull of Johnny's scent will draw Sungchan soon enough without any of their help. "For you," he says as he sets the full cup in Jisung's hand, smiling softly. He wants to ruffle the boy's hair, but he has done enough space invading for a first meeting even with Jisung pressed to his side. 

Jisung smiles shyly and sips happily, a different sort of color returning to his face. He looks every bit like the nineteen-year-old boy he will be for the rest of his life and Doyoung knows from the soft look in Taeyong's eyes that he loves this boy dearly.

So does Johnny.

Sungchan clears his throat from the door. Renjun is not hovering behind him, which surprises Doyoung after his earlier performance with Donghyuck, but Taeyong is up in a moment to pull the boy into his arms for a tight hug.

Tears pool in his eyes when he recognizes Johnny's scent on the sweater he hides his face in and he rubs his cheek against it as Taeyong does his best to comfort his new son. 

Doyoung hates the council. He always has, so has Yuta, but this situation is a grave miscarriage of justice. Taeyong deserves better. These two fledglings deserve much better than to have their sire torn away from them when he should be at their side, teaching what they need.

•❅──────✧❅✦❅✧──────❅•

Later, Sungchan lays his back against Renjun's chest as they watch Law & Order: SVU for the umpteenth time and sighs softly. "I don't know what I would do if I were them..." He presses a soft kiss to Renjun’s wrist and gets a gentle hum in return. 

"You'd probably try to beat someone up with your skinny arms," Renjun teases and presses a gentle kiss to his boyfriend's head. Sungchan doesn’t disagree with him but vampirism has made the strength hidden in his skinny arms a little more intimidating. "I miss Johnny..."

"Me too… Do you think he's okay?" Sungchan asks, turning around to rest his head on Renjun's shoulder. His pulse is right there and is strong, but Sungchan doesn't have a real desire to sink his teeth into his neck. Well, outside of the residual urge to mark Renjun's pretty throat. He presses his nose into the warm skin and Renjun cradles his head to his neck.

"I don't know," he says honestly and presses a kiss to Sungchan's head. "Doyoung says so, and I think we can trust him, but he's like...in prison, right? Limited visitation and all of that.”

"I'm guessing as much. Whatever the fuck vampire prison means." He wonders about the logistics of wherever Johnny is being kept and hopes that, at the very least, Johnny is comfortable. 

Renjun lets him stay there, carding his fingers through his hair. "...Is that hard for you...? Being that close and not biting?"

Sungchan shrugs, nose brushing along Renjun's skin again to draw a shiver out of him. "I don't want to hurt you. I keep thinking about that and it’s easy to resist it.”

Renjun thinks about what Taeyong told him and tries not to blush too obviously. He sees Sungchan’s nose wrinkle and knows he didn’t fully succeed. "It, um. Doesn't hurt."

Sungchan lifts up from his place on Renjun's shoulder and blinks at him. "...Oh my god, did you ask Taeyong about fucking recreational biting? Renjun, I’m going to die right now."

"No, the fuck you aren’t, so jot that down immediately. And Taeyong told me unprovoked! He'd asked if we had sex since you...ya know."

Sungchan looks mortified. "Oh my gods... Did you tell him? _Renjun_! This man has practically adopted us and you told him about our sex life?"

"I mean, the answer is ‘no’! You were in the hospital for what? Nearly four months? And have been a vampire for almost _two_ months. It's not like it's easy to just...bring up the topic now that Jisung can hear through the walls and you have...blood hunger. So there’s no real sex life to _tell_ him about!"

Sungchan groans. "I mean, yeah… But what did _he_ say?"

Taeyong had, in short, given Sungchan and Renjun full permission to have sex in the house. He was close enough to intervene if it became an issue, which Renjun would actually rather Sungchan kill him instead. The knowledge that Taeyong would be able to _hear_ enough to know if something went wrong is nothing short of horrifying and if Renjun were to die doing anything, he wouldn’t mind so much if it was by Sungchan’s hands.

Or fangs, as it were. "That it would, in theory, be okay He didn’t go into any real detail or anything. I think he could tell I wanted to crawl out of my skin.”

Sungchan makes a strangled noise and collapses on top of Renjun, covering his face with his hands and acting every bit of a drama queen. Sometimes Renjun can’t stand him and knows that Xuxi’s inherent dramatics have rubbed off on him."Would it? Like...would you be okay with it...?"

"We don't have to do it _now_ ," Renjun laughs and hugs his shoulders, "but yes, I would be. I think it'd be hot."

"Monster fucker." Sungchan’s not actually sure that vampires count as monsters in the grand scheme of things but Renjun would also very much like to fuck Venom so it doesn’t sound too out of character. 

"Okay? Is that supposed to be an insult?" Renjun snorts and smiles softly as Sungchan kisses his throat before settling down. They can sleep for now but Renjun won't deny that Sungchan's embarrassment is very entertaining. “Hey?” Sungchan hums softly, arms winding around Renjun’s waist. “Love you.”

“Love you, too…”

**_Days Until Johnny’s Return: 20._ **


	3. iii.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _1912, New York City_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> doyoung, yuta, shotaro, and donghyuck's history.
> 
> the non-explicit sex happens in this chapter and starts with "Yuta beams..." and ends before "Johnny falls..."

_1912, New York City_

Kim Dongyoung is one of the most beautiful men that Yuta has ever laid eyes on. He holds himself with a particular sort of grace, the kind that many in the courts of Japan that Yuta used to call home would have envied, and that many assume makes him aloof and untouchable. Dongyoung is not cruel, though his tongue is sharp, and Yuta watches as he moves through the lounge like water with his scotch held loosely in his left hand. His silver double-breasted vest shows off his slim waist and the eyes of every person in the club are on him, drinking him in faster than the liquor in their hands. 

He has them enthralled but Yuta seeks to _know_ him. Yuta wants to know what makes him tick, what makes him laugh, and how sweet his blood might feel on his tongue. Dongyoung climbs onto the stage and Yuta sits up a little straighter, resting his glass on his knee. He watches the singer’s lovely fingers curl around the microphone and microphone stand, adjusting it to his preferred height before he smiles toward the crowd. 

Yuta likes his smile. It is wide, earnest, and shows his gums in a way that Yuta is wholly enamored with. 

But then Dongyoung opens his mouth and sings, voice as smooth as Acadiana honey, and doe-like eyes warm as he looks over the crowd. He’s not singing to anyone in particular as he draws them all under his spell and sways easily to the music accompanying him but when his eyes meet Yuta’s, his focus narrows in quickly. 

He’s not supposed to do this for what Yuta can assume is a long list of reasons including the judgment of his fellow humans, but Dongyoung holds his gaze for most of his first song. 

Yuta has seen him perform several times before, and left him a rose with the sweet hostess every time, but they had never had a moment like this. He wonders if he’s been found out. 

He wonders if Dongyoung holds the same prejudices as the people around them must until the second song begins and Dongyoung finds his gaze again, delicate fingers slowly sliding down the slim microphone stand as he pulls it closer to himself. 

“Let Me Call You Sweetheart” is a favorite of Dongyoung’s, Yuta has noticed. It rarely leaves his set but tonight, it feels like he is singing it to Yuta directly. His voice washes over Yuta like warm spring rain and comforts the parts of him that thrash and snarl even when he’s at rest. 

Dongyoung and his sun-warmed honey voice bring Yuta a peace he’s never known since being turned and he wants to take it in his hands and never let it go. As the song meets its end, Yuta knows that he would let Dongyoung call him whatever he liked so long as it was with love. 

Before Yuta knows it, Dongyoung’s set has ended and his scotch lays untouched on his knee. He knows that he should take his leave and leave his usual rose with the hostess but he doesn’t want to run tonight. _Let me call you sweetheart_ is echoing through his head and when Dongyoung leaves the stage to walk through the crowd and walks straight to Yuta, he’s there to receive him.

“You always leave before I can catch you,” he says as he sits down beside Yuta. He inclines his head towards Yuta’s untouched drink and accepts it when Yuta holds it out to him. “I always thought you hated my performances but I see that I’m wrong.”

Yuta smiles and leans back against the couch, tilting his head as Dongyoung takes a long drink. It is hard to look away from his long, pale throat as he swallows the smooth scotch down and Yuta decides not to. “What gave me away?” He asks. 

Dongyoung knows he’s interested already, what’s a little more obvious attention?

Dongyoung lowers the glass slightly before he tilts it towards the rose in Yuta’s breast pocket. Ah. He hadn’t realized it was so visible. “You leave me one every time you come.”

“What do you do with them?”

“Why don’t you find out?” He asks, plucking it out of Yuta’s pocket and slipping it into one of his buttonholes. “And what should I call you?”

Yuta catches Dongyoung’s hand and presses a cool kiss to the inside of his wrist to feel his pulse race against his lips. It is nothing for Dongyoung to cup his cheek in hand and Yuta knows in a moment that there will never be a moment in his lifetime where he will be able to deny Dongyoung. “Nakamoto Yuta.”

“Well then, Nakamoto Yuta,” Dongyoung says, tracing his fingers over Yuta’s jaw and smiling as the vampire chases after the sensation, “come with me and I’ll show you what I do with all of those roses.”

There is no real innuendo in the words but when Yuta meets Dongyoung’s eyes, the heat there is impossible to deny. “Lead the way,” he says and slips his hand into Dongyoung’s. It’s not quite as soft as Yuta would have imagined but Dongyoung spends time at the lounge’s piano during some of his sets. “I’ll go wherever you lead.”

•❅──────✧❅✦❅✧──────❅•

Dongyoung knows he’s late as he lets himself into Johnny’s apartment the next morning so he doesn’t try to quiet his footsteps as he comes inside. He didn’t even stop to change at his own apartment and as he sheds his coat in the doorway, Taeyong rests his hands on his slim hips with a grin that might as well be criminal. “Do your worst,” Dongyoung sighs as he steps out of his shoes. He can head Johnny cooking in the kitchen and he’s hungrier than he thought. 

“Where did you go last night~?” Taeyong chirps, and steps out of the way for little Ruby to run up to Dongyoung in greeting. “You’re wearing your performance clothes!”

Johnny turns around and whistles, clearly impressed. “You look very nice, Doie.”

“Oh, fuck you.” Dongyoung sighs and scoops Ruby up, walking into the kitchen to follow the smell of eggs and bacon. “You know the patron who always brings me roses? I met him formally, last night.”

“And swiftly engaged in sin with him.” Johnny clicks his tongue in mock disapproval, laughing as Dongyoung smacks his arm. “Was it good?”

Taeyong giggles and Dongyoung hates them both for being absolutely incapable of minding their business. But he loves them, he does, and good sex is good sex so he’s not terribly ashamed to share it with his two best friends. “It was,” he admits, leaning against the counter he rubs Ruby’s soft belly. “He is…”

Dongyoung thinks about how he was torn apart by every touch of Yuta’s nimble fingers before being put back together again with his kisses. He thinks about the perfect way their bodies moved together, Yuta’s soft kisses to his belly, and how Yuta swallowed him down with no hesitation. Dongyoung had been _worshipped_ at Yuta’s hands and he’d never felt such pleasure before. “I don’t think I could have another.”

Taeyong raises a brow but there’s a gentle smile on his lips. He understands the sentiment because he’s never had another than Johnny and will never have another. Sometimes it’s just like that and there is no use fighting that feeling, even with all of society’s judgment for them. “You think you can fall in love with him?”

Dongyoung knows he can. Dongyoung knows he’s nearly there already. “He makes it very easy.”

“Then that's that, isn’t it, ol’ sport?” Johnny grins and gestures for Dongyoung to sit down so they can eat. “He’ll be yours.”

Dongyoung certainly hopes so.

•❅──────✧❅✦❅✧──────❅•

Yuta lays his head on Dongyoung’s chest, ear pressed to his heart to listen to it beat strong and constant in his chest as he rubs a lazy circle on the outside of the thigh Dongyoung has hitched around his waist. Dongyoung is so warm, so human, and so very fragile even as he lays beneath Yuta on the bed with a book in the hand not carding through his lover’s hair. “Sweetheart?”

Dongyoung hums softly, pulling his attention from his book to smile over at Yuta. “Yes?” He is so beautiful and Yuta finds himself just taking him in for a while. “Yuta… You're staring.”

“Do you know?” The soft sigh he gets in answer tells him that, yes, he does. He doesn’t want to know how long it’s been because Dongyoung clearly is still with him. He still loves him even as forever leaves Yuta untouched by time. “Do you want this life? Forever with me?”

Dongyoung meets Yuta’s eyes and smiles softly at him. “Not now, but yes. I do.”

Yuta beams and moves up his chest to kiss him slow and deep, pulling Dongyoung’s thighs up on his hips and swallowing his soft moan. “I’m in love with you,” he whispers as Dongyoung drops the book and wraps his arms around his shoulders and their hips move together. 

“And I you,” Dongyoung gasps and throws his head back as Yuta thrust into him and fucks him deep and slow. They had made love scant hours earlier and sensitivity still tingles Dongyoung’s nerves as they move in careful tandem, bodies pressed together. “Yuta…”

“I’m here. I’ve got you,” Yuta whispers against his lips. It’s so easy to fall into him and Dongyoung would not trade him for anything in the world. 

They make love until the sun sets over the horizon and Dongyoung shudders as Yuta’s fangs sink into his neck. He tangles his fingers into his vampire’s hair and moans out his ecstasy as he spills on his belly. There is something wonderful about giving his lover life like this during their most intimate moments. He won’t be able to do it forever, but he will enjoy it while he can. 

Johnny falls in that summer and Yuta moves him into his townhouse to take care of him. Taeyong sits in loyal vigil, Johnny’s hand in his as he holds it to his lips, and Dongyoung’s heart aches for his best friends. They can’t lose Johnny.

So Yuta sends a telegram and holds Dongyoung as he cries at night with a promise that they will all have forever. All will be well, he swears and kisses his love’s cheek. 

Dongyoung believes him. They will be together and Johnny will have a new life. All will be alright. 

•❅──────✧❅✦❅✧──────❅•

_2019, Tokyo_

Worlds end all of the time for people all over the world. It’s a hard phenomenon to stop, Yuta knows, but sometimes he can intervene. Sometimes he can save the lives of his friends and the man he loves. 

He has destroyed so many lives, saving the ones he can is his penance for the pain he’s caused in his two hundred years. 

Shotaro has been his apprentice for two years, one for nail art and one for tattooing, he knows what the boy likes (dancing and otters), his favorite food (sushi), and that he has a crush on a boy named Donghyuck that he is nervous to act on. He is always at either shop on time, often with snacks even though Yuta doesn’t eat much, and he’s talented. He’s got so much life within him and he is a gift to the world.

The car accident is a loud, horrible, and world-ending thing. Yuta is on the scene immediately and before the crowd could really build, he tore open the door to Shotaro’s little hybrid and pulls his darling boy out. He feels so small in Yuta’s arms and his blood is _everywhere_ , soaking his clothes and smearing over Yuta’s skin. They need to move quickly, but for a long moment, Yuta is frozen with horror. “Taro-chan, can you hear me?”

It takes a second but Shotaro nods, weak and tired, and Yuta is up and off the scene as he cradles Shotaro to his chest and sprints up the street to his apartment with Doyoung. He doesn’t stop talking to Shotaro the whole time, trying to keep him awake, and calling for Doyoung as he makes it to their apartment.

The thick copper smell reaches Doyoung through the door and he throws it open for them, eyes wide with horror. “What _happened_?”

“Car accident. His car was totaled and I can’t, Doyoung—“

“Do it. I approve it, _do it_.” 

Yuta adores his husband but doesn’t have much time to think on it before he sinks his teeth into Shotaro’s wrist, eyes squeezing shut as he screams and Doyoung kneels to comfort him, stroking his hair. He knows that his venom burns as it rushes through Shotaro and he _knows_ that his blood is going to be worse that first day, but he simply can’t let Shotaro die. Not today.

He’s barely conscious and Doyoung has to hold his mouth open so Yuta’s blood can pour into his mouth, whispers sweet little words into Shotaro’s ear before Yuta’s blood takes hold. Shotaro swallows down his blood eagerly, holding his wrist to his mouth and all of the tension melts out of his body as the burn of a newfound hunger is sated. 

Doyoung has to file paperwork in secret for this but it’s nothing to him, really, not when Shotaro slumps against Yuta’s chest and nuzzles his nose into his sire’s throat for comfort. He’s trembling something fierce but he did almost die on their floor. Doyoung thinks there has to be some trauma in that. 

•❅──────✧❅✦❅✧──────❅•

Shotaro lays in his bed in Yuta and Doyoung’s apartment and props his phone up in its cradle so he can see Donghyuck as he walks through their college campus. 

“Class is miserable without you,” Donghyuck sniffs and looks down at Shotaro on his screen with a smile. “But I’m glad you’re okay… I’m sorry about your car but I’m happy you’re _alive_ , you know?”

“I know. It’s so weird, though. Like, I can feel, smell, and see like, _everything_ and it is so new and is taking a lot of time to get used to. And I’m starving constantly.”

“Can you like, eat people food?” Donghyuck asks and heads to the campus Starbucks. “Can I get a venti Americano with vanilla syrup? Yeah—Donghyuck. Thank you!” It’s a familiar speech and it’s so comforting to go on this little adventure with Hyuck. He’s not sure when he’ll be able to see him properly so this will have to do for now.

“I can, but that’s not really what I’m hungry for?” Donghyuck’s nose wrinkles but Shotaro knows that he’s not horrified. “I have to drink so much and it’s kind of gross but Yuta says I’ll get used to it.”

Hyuck hums as he waits for his drink, lifting his phone to pull a face and draw a happy giggle from Shotaro. “Being a vampire sounds cool. I want to be a vampire.”

Shotaro’s heart doesn’t really beat anymore but it flips at the prospect of having something like Yuta and Doyoung do. He’s not told Donghyuck that he likes him but the very _thought_ of having it just sounds so nice. “Yeah?” He wonders if that’s something that can happen, someone being turned for fun and because they want to live forever. Hyuck would probably try to be famous with immortality but it’s kind of what he deserves. “Maybe that can happen?”

Donghyuck hums, thanking the barista for his coffee and walking to his class building. “Do you think Doyoung would turn me? Like, I know I get on his nerves but I’m also positive he loves me because I am a delight! A dream to work with!”

Shotaro knows Doyoung would disagree with those last two points but he also knows that Doyoung does like Donghyuck. “Maybe! I don’t know if I can ask but you’re welcome to when you’re both at the club?”

“We could be best friends forever, Taro! Doesn't that just sound great?” It does and it doesn’t quite feel like the friend zone but they’re kind of almost there. “Okay, I have class, I’ll talk to you later!”

“Bye, Hyuckie~ Send me the notes!”

“Got it,” he chirps before blowing an obscene amount of kisses into the phone before he hangs up.

Shotaro rolls onto his back and looks up at the ceiling, resting his hands on his stomach and wondering how long it will take him to confess after Donghyuck is turned into a vampire.

They will have forever, after all. 

**_Days Until Johnny’s Return: 16._ **


	4. iv.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When Kun comes to the manor, he’s struck by several things at once.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> enter: jaemin, hendery, and jaehyun. again.

When Kun comes to the manor, he’s struck by several things at once. First of all, that the usually pristine entryway has a multitude of converse and too many Chelsea boots to just belong to Taeyong. Second, there’s a gentle smell of pastries baking in the kitchen and the soft sound of someone singing to themself as they move through the room. Thirdly, and perhaps most importantly, Taeyong looks a little less miserable than he did the last time Kun made time to come see him. His long blond hair is pulled back in a pretty series of little braids and a ponytail and the exhaustion has left his eyes. He looks like the lovely little sprite of a man Kun met in New Orleans, dark hair nearly floating around him as he danced in the Jackson Square with Irene and Johnny.

It’s odd, how thinking about that makes his chest ache. Johnny isn't _lost_ but Taeyong had lost so much of his light in his absence. Kun is happy to see it back even if most of the light in Taeyong’s eyes is still missing. 

“I see they’re taking over the house,” Kun says as he tucks a flyaway strand of Taeyong’s hair behind his ear. 

Taeyong looks down at the shoes and laughs softly, gently nudging a pair of bright blue converse out of the way. “They are, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.” Kun understands that even if he much prefers the empty nest he and Jaehyun have now that Jaemin and Hendery have moved out on their own to their gaudy penthouse. He pulls Taeyong into his arms and presses a soft kiss to the top of his head as some of the posturings floods out of his body with a sigh. 

There’s a small crash in the kitchen and the sharp Mandarin swear that follows draws a laugh out of Kun before he can stop himself. A small boy pops his head out of the kitchen when Taeyong tuts and he offers both of the vampires a smile. 

“Nothing broke,” he promises, a smear of flour on his cheek. “Oh, hi. I didn’t know we were having company, sorry about that.”

Kun switches to Mandarin easily as he takes in the whip of a boy and his brown sweater dress. “ _You must be Renjun. You can call me Kun._ ” He looks a little like a fluffy fox and Kun is immediately endeared to him and the strength that lies hidden beneath his cozy exterior. 

“ _I am. Would you like some tea?_ ” Kun touches his own cheek with his finger and smiles as Renjun rubs the flour away with a pretty flush. “ _Thank you, Kun. Tea?_ ”

“ _Tea would be lovely. Where are your charges?_ ”

Taeyong holds up one finger to Kun and Renjun turns his head to the side as Sungchan and Jisung come from the top floor. They look groggy but Sungchan’s eyes narrow in Kun’s direction quickly and he’s beside Renjun with a hand on his back before any of them can blink. Jisung moves slower but comes to stand slightly behind Taeyong. Kun is fully prepared for them to hiss but Renjun rests his hand on Sungchan’s and gives Jisung a sharp look before he steps into the kitchen to make the tea. “Jisungie, can you check on the oven?”

“Mm..” Jisung moves into the kitchen easily and offers Kun a small smile before he disappears. “Oh, are you making pineapple buns?”

That explained the familiar smell. “Yeah, they should be done soon. Channie,” Renjun tilts his head back and is kissed quickly on his lips. He rolls his eyes but he does return the kiss before he speaks again. “Tea kettle, please. The cast-iron one.”

Sungchan takes another kiss, squeezes Renjun’s hips, and slips into the kitchen without a word. He’s calling out a moment later though, which doesn’t seem to surprise Renjun. “Which cast-iron one? You have three.”

“Four,” Taeyong corrects and follows them into the kitchen. “The gold one, Renjun?”

“Yes, please!” Renjun smiles back at them and turns to Kun again. There’s something in his eyes that seems so terribly familiar—a sharp ferocity wrapped around all of the love he has for his vampires in this home—and Kun considers him thoughtfully. “ _You work with Doyoung at the council house. Will you be honest with me, Kun?_ ”

“ _That depends entirely on the question, Renjun._ ” Something in his eyes flashes and Kun tries not to laugh when he makes the connection. Renjun moves with all of the grace of the foxes Kun saw growing up and has the sharpest eyes of any human he has ever seen. 

Besides Sicheng. They’d probably get along, actually.

“ _Johnny._ ”

“ _I suppose that’s the only question that matters, isn’t it? I will be honest with you, but it is not as horrible as you believe it is._ _You have them all wrapped around your little finger,_ ” Kun notes as he follows Renjun into the kitchen. The fact doesn’t surprise him, far from it, because any human who can reel in two fledglings for the better part of two months by himself would have the power to turn any heart his way.

“ _Do I?_ ” Renjun shrugs and steps on a stool to get into the cabinets. A cabinet Kun _knew_ used to be empty is now piled high with glass jars of tea leaves and what he believes to be matcha powder. He’s making this mark on this home and the personality he brings is sweet." _I just got some Fuzhou jasmine? Would you like some of that?”_

Kun hasn’t had Fuzhou jasmine tea in probably decades, since he last went back home, and he hums softly. “ _It sounds perfect. But yes, you do._ ”

“Kun,” Taeyong scolds and grabs a packet of sweet potato snacks from another cabinet. “Are you talking about us?”

“If you were better at Mandarin, Yongie-love, you would know. You’ve had so much time.”

Taeyong purses his lips and turns on every darling sparkle in his eyes because he knows that he is absolutely hypnotizing when he does it. Kun is not immune no matter how much he’d like to be. “I am doing my very best!”

Kun does not point out that he’s been learning Mandarin since 1949 and should be fluent in the very least by now because he’s not trying to embarrass Taeyong in front of his new sons, but he hopes Taeyong knows that he’s thinking it.

(He does.)

“They’re not, for reference,” Jisung says as he takes the tray out from the oven and rests it to the side to cool. “They were just talking about tea.”

Taeyong hums and is satisfied with that as he nibbles on his snack with his usual happy little sounds. There is still weight on his shoulders but he looks at ease. It is partially a front for the boys and Kun is sure that it absolutely shatters when he’s alone but overall, Taeyong’s misery is better handled than he expected it to be. 

Kun turns attention to the young vampires in the room and studies them carefully, listening to the way their hearts beat in time…

With Renjun’s. They’re young enough to still have beating hearts but they have adapted wholly to Renjun to the degree that the way their very hearts _beat_ follows his lead. In all his years, Kun has never seen anything like it. Taeil is too old to have a beating heart but he wonders if it would beat in time with Sicheng’s or if this is a phenomenon exclusive to little Renjun and his vampiric charges. 

“Do you use your fangs to feed?” Kun asks as Renjun pours water over the tea leaves for them to steep in his cast iron teapot. There are winding dragons on it and Kun admires how lovely it is. 

Jisung and Sungchan wrinkle their noses in tandem and Kun finds himself snorting. Biting into the plastic of the blood pouches is awful, he knows, but it is good practice for them. “Have you fed off Taeyong?”

“A couple of times,” Sungchan answers and avoids sitting on the counter because Taeyong gives him a stern look as he moves to lift himself onto it. “We know how to use our fangs. It's just a matter of how nasty it is to bite into the bags.”

“Renjun also passes out,” Jisung adds helpfully and gets pinched on the arm for his efforts. “Sometimes you do! When we eat messily!”

Kun imagines that at their age, that messy feeding from bags happens more often than not. His eyes follow Sungchan as he moves to the fridge to grab blood now that it’s been brought up, his jaw held tight. He does not miss the ache in his jaw from when he was a newborn.

It was well over three hundred years ago, but it’s a pain that one never truly forgets. 

Renjun’s hands are steady as he pours the tea into two cups and Kun admires the color. Kun burned tea regularly at his age but Renjun seems to be excellent in everything he learns from tea making to raising vampires. He’s made of solid diamond and Kun wonders just how hard he can be when provoked. 

The council needs to be torn to pieces by someone they cannot control and there’s no one farther from their control than Renjun. At the very least, it would be comical to see him go. 

“Channie,” Renjun asks and Kun shakes himself from his thoughts as Sungchan stops and turns his attention to Renjun easily. “Can I talk to Kun alone? You know he won’t hurt me.”

Sungchan doesn’t look easily convinced and turns his pretty wide eyes to Kun when Renjun can’t see. Kun raises his hands, palms out, and offers him a charming smile.

“Cross my heart and hope to die again,” Kun says and the laugh that pulls out of Sungchan and Jisung lets him know that he’s off the hook. 

Kun and Renjun sit in the kitchen’s breakfast nook once the others take their leave and Kun tears into one of the pineapple buns before he speaks. “ _So, you want to know Johnny’s condition?_ ”

“ _He’s a big vampire, I’m sure he is more than capable of taking care of himself but also I owe him everything._ ” Renjun takes a sip of his tea and closes his eyes for a moment. “ _miss him a normal amount but Taeyong thinks I can’t hear him cry at night. Sungchan and Jisung find themselves looking for him before they realize and immediately try to find something else to do. The people I love are falling apart and I need to know if I should worry about anything worse.”_

There is too much on this little human’s plate. Kun guesses he was in school before his world started to end at a steady pace and doesn’t want to know what he’s sacrificed to be here making sure that _three_ vampires aren’t having meltdowns because they’re missing the one person they can’t have right now. Renjun expects bad news from him and Kun is grateful that he doesn’t have any. 

It’s clear that Renjun has heard too much bad news in his short life. 

“ _He’s comfortable in a very big room with a lovely window. He misses all of you more than I can possibly say but I’m sure you already have an idea. They have not hurt anything other than his heart.”_

Renjun doesn’t look relieved but his shoulders relax. “ _That I can deal with. Thank you._ ”

Kun reaches over the table and rests his hand on Renjun’s. “ _You do not have to take care of them alone. Call me if it gets too hard to shoulder the emotions of those you love. Do you still talk to your friends?_ ” Renjun gives a tiny little nod. “ _Call them. They might not be able to visit just yet but call them. Talk about anything else. You must look out for yourself, too. Enough neglecting yourself for the comfort of others. Do you hear me?_ ”

Renjun holds his teacup tight in his hands and finally lets the tears he’s been holding in for months fall with a soft hiccup. He’s gone so long without thinking of himself and Kun knows how much his heart must ache. Pain is hard enough to bear when it is your own and infinitely worse when it belongs to those you love. Kun stands and wraps his arms around him, stroking his hair back from his face as he finally lets the dams break. 

He can smell Sungchan lingering, drawn by the sniffles, but the young vampire doesn’t come into the room despite the worry coming off of him in waves. _“Shh… It’s alright, you can let it go…”_

And Renjun does, with all of the force of a typhoon, after he whispers one name. Kun steps back from him in a moment and lets Sungchan take his place, holding Renjun tight in his arms and rocking him gently. Renjun’s tears don’t stop but he curls up fully in Sungchan’s arms and lets himself be supported and held. 

“Don’t let him hold everything in again,” Kun says softly and hums his approval when Sungchan nods at him. It’ll take time for them to get where they need to be but Kun has faith in the cradle of Sungchan’s arms. “Taeyong will give you my number, okay, Renjun? It _will_ be okay.”

Kun has a solid chunk of the power here, after all.

Taeyong intercepts Kun in the hallway and grabs his hand. He’s shaking and Kun gathers him into his arms before pressing a soft kiss to his temple. “He was long overdue for a cry. Sungchan’s got him. Breathe.”

“I don’t need to,” Taeyong reminds him before taking a deep breath and letting it back out. “You’re sure he’s okay?”

“Positive. I’m going to go but Taeyong?” Kun cradles his cheek and smiles at the small ‘mm..’ he gets in response. “Do not bottle your feelings up. Make sure Renjun doesn’t either.”

Taeyong sighs but offers Kun a small smile. “I am not good at sharing my burden, Kun…”

“It certainly won’t kill you to try, Yong. For the boys.” It’s an unfair little jab but Taeyong softens and nods just a little. “See you soon, I’ll bring Jaehyun next time, okay?”

“Okay. Bye, Kunnie.”

•❅──────✧❅✦❅✧──────❅•

"Did you absolutely _have_ to invite them?" Kun sighs as Jaemin's bubblegum pink convertible pulls up in their garage. Ariana Grande is nearly shaking the cute little car and Kun feels a migraine coming a mile away. "Could you not have let our wretched children be wretched in their own home? Must they come with us?”

Jaehyun smiles sweetly as he climbs into his cherry-red sports car. "Absolutely not, my love."

Jaehyun and Jaemin are two sides of the same coin. Kun sighs again but he does climb into the car and offers the boys a wave through the window. “How can we have an empty nest if you insist on inviting our former fledglings everywhere we go?” He loves his sons, he does, but club kids don't ever stop being club kids and he wishes they would simply...vibe, to use their words. They won’t because it doesn’t suit them to vibe when they could be having fun driving Kun insane specifically but sometimes Kun imagines that it would be nice. 

Jaehyun doesn’t answer him not because he doesn’t have an answer for Kun, but because he doesn’t want to say it aloud. He doesn’t like having an empty nest. They have Cookie, their tiny little cavapoo, and as much as Jaehyun loves her, it is nothing like having Jaemin and Hendery in the house with them while they adjusted to their lives as vampires. 

Kun does understand better than he’d readily admit, but he does like having a quiet house. Sometimes. 

"How are they doing?" Jaehyun asks as they drive down the familiar streets to the Lee-Suh manor. "You went the other day but you didn't say anything."

Kun purses his lips and looks out of the window to the buildings speeding by. "How would you feel if I had been taken away? How would you feel in Renjun’s position–taking care of not one, but _three_ vampires who are pining insanely because they are being punished for something entirely out of their control?"

Jaehyun, unfortunately, knows exactly what Renjun’s position is like. It’s hard to lie to Kun, even if it’s by omission but it’s better for everyone involved that he keeps his involvement a secret. But Taeyong… Taeyong’s pain he can only imagine and try to conceptualize. Jaehyun and Kun have only been together for a fraction of the time Johnny and Taeyong have but if Kun had been taken away a mere month after they’d made either of their fledglings, he would have lost his mind. He could care for them without Kun but that wasn’t the point, really. When you make fledglings _together_ , you expect to take care of them _together_. And Jaemin, a fledgling who curls against Jaehyun every chance he gets to tuck his face into his neck and rub his scent all over himself, would be a mess should Jaehyun have been taken from him mere weeks after being turned. It’s cruel to all of the parties involved and Jaehyun wishes he could be of more help.

"So, they’re all absolutely fucking miserable," Jaehyun says, turning his head to look at Kun for a moment. Kun gestures for him to turn his eyes back on the road like Jaehyun isn’t fully capable of driving and admiring his husband at the same time.

"In short, yes. Taeyong is coping but in the thinnest way possible and only because having the boys with him to distract him from the loneliness and pain. Renjun is..." Kun sighs and leans back in the seat, cleaning under his nails as he thinks. Jaehyun isn’t surprised at all that Kun has taken to Renjun so quickly. “I think he’s going to be doing a lot better soon. It’s a hard situation but I am glad that the boys and Taeyong have taken to each other so quickly. I wasn’t sure they would.”

Jaehyun rolls his eyes. Taeyong has all of the love in the world and the boys are so easy to fall in love with _and_ needed to have someone to depend on with Johnny gone and Jaehyun...saving his own skin. He wishes that weren’t the case but unfortunately, it is what it is and he had his plea from Johnny. Keep the boys safe and keep yourself safe. 

Johnny’s an idiot but Jaehyun will listen. "You always expect the worst," he says and smiles as Kun sucks his teeth.

"Have you met our vampire council? I've learned to expect the worst out of those fools and their actions and I’m not _wrong_ for that."

Jaehyun pities Kun and Doyoung for their council positions but he also knows that nothing would get done if those old idiots were left to their own devices. They could do with a younger perspective but Jaehyun would rather pluck his own eyes out than offer himself up for such torture. But he’s aware of the plan that’s been brewing for the past two years and is content to wait for upheaval. Upheaval is always fun, after all. Revolutions, even small ones, keep people on their toes.

They're almost to the house when Jaemin Facetimes Jaehyun and Kun reluctantly answers the phone. From what he can tell, the younger vampire has his feet on the dash and is reclining happily in the car as Ariana Grande still bumps from their speakers. There’s a blood lollipop in his mouth and he looks completely at ease. It’s not quite a dangerous sign but Jaemin’s smile is.

"So, is there anything we shouldn't say?" He asks before swirling the lollipop in his mouth. 

"There is so much you shouldn't say, Jaemin, I don't even know where to start." There's a whine on the other end of the phone and Jaehyun laughs softly. Jaemin likes lists in certain circumstances but never when it’s a list of what he can and cannot do.

"I won't bring up Johnny. I feel like that is the most important one? Like, do not bring up the one thing traumatizing them on purpose. Um... "

"Don’t bring up drugs," Kun says firmly.

He can feel Jaemin and Hendery rolling their eyes on the other line and rolls his own back, crossing his arms as he holds the phone up. "Are you still pretending like you remember the 90s, dad?" Hendery says and Kun does not, by any circumstance, need to be called out by his former fledgling on this day.

"No, because I truly have no fucking idea what happened in the 80s and 90s except for the fact that I know have all three of you forever which is blessing and curse in equal measure. But they are young and I don't need your bad behavior to rub off on them in this turbulent time."

“‘Turbulent time.’ God, you are so fucking old.” Jaehyun gets a slap on his arm for that, but he regrets absolutely nothing.

"I don't think we've ever behaved well," Hendery notes absently, fingers tapping on the steering wheel. "But I'll do it for Taeyong."

"Of course you will. Never because I asked but because you adore Taeyong and do not love me, your own sire."

“It’s the lies, for me,” Jaemin starts, and Kun immediately regrets everything.

“It’s the dramatics, for me,” Jaehyun continues, laughing loudly as Kun bares his fangs at him.

“It’s all of it, for me,” Hendery finishes smoothly and grins over at the phone. Kun should hang up, he really should, but then the drama would increase tenfold. 

But he doesn’t tell them that he hates them, because he doesn’t. He never could. 

Jaemin turns the camera back to himself and spins the lollipop in his mouth again. He looks incredibly thoughtful and Kun hums softly to encourage him. “The human, what’s his name?”

“Renjun.”

“Renjun, that’s pretty~ But, he’s not okay, is he? I’m sure he’s pretending but he can’t be okay. Do you think he’s open to new friends?”

Kun certainly doesn’t think that new friends could hurt Renjun in this situation but he wonders if being able to see his human friends would be of more help. But Jaemin doesn’t have a psychology degree for no reason and if Kun tells him how lonely Renjun has been, Jaemin won’t hesitate to try and become Renjun’s new best friend.

Kun is certain that position has been long filled but comfort is comfort and Jaemin has love in abundance. “I think he would be, actually.” Jaemin preens and does a little shimmy in his seat. Such a happy little bunny.

Jaemin meets Jisung and immediately starts to cool like a mother hen as if the younger vampire did not tower over him. Kun sighs as Jaehyun wraps Taeyong up into a hug. "I'm sorry," Kun says and resists snapping his fingers at Hendery when the young vampire hops onto the counter. Hendery stares him down but slides down before Taeyong can see him. 

"Don't apologize for Jaemin," Taeyong laughs softly, turning his head to watch him. "I adore him."

Kun adores him, too, even if he gets grouchy about it because Jaemin is eccentric and wonderful with so much love in his still heart. “I’m apologizing for Hendery, too.”

“I can apologize for _myself_ , thank you very much!” Hendery huffs and tries not to grin too wide as Taeyong laughs a little louder. It’s nice to help him feel even the smallest bit better. 

There’s always an abundance of love and energy whenever they come to visit and Taeyong allows the warmth building in the room to wrap around him like a heavy blanket. Jaemin is attached to Jisung like a bubblegum pink barnacle and has his other hand resting lightly on Hendery’s leg as he starts encouraging Jisung and Sungchan both to pursue psychology minors.

“I think I’ll just...stick to my history major, actually,” Sungchan says and scratches lightly behind his ear as he leans against the counter beside Renjun. “Very comfortable there.”

“You major in history?” Kun asks, sitting on one of the barstools and sighing as Jaehyun immediately makes himself at home in his lap. He won’t be moving for a few hours but he accepted the fact that his husband was clingy back in 1985 when he met him and knows Jaehyun isn’t going to change any time soon. “You’ve found yourself in perfect research company.”

Sungchan grins. “Oh, definitely figured that out at the very beginning of this little adventure. Citing my papers with ‘A Literal Interview with a Vampire’ is going to be fun.”

“Don’t clarify,” Taeyong says sagely.

“I wouldn’t dare.”

"How old are you?" Renjun asks as he makes himself tea in the kitchen. The question isn’t for the older vampires in the room and Taeyong hides his smile behind his wine glass. Kun requests a cup and Renjun gestures for Sungchan to get another down for him. “I mean, obviously neither of you have to answer, but like...if you want to.”

“Human ages or _vampire_ ages?” Jaemin asks, tilting his head thoughtfully.

Jisung considers the question. “Are you okay with answering both?” 

"Yup! I was born as a human in 1974 and turned in 1996! So, I am forever a nice and crisp twenty-two but I would be turning 47 this year if I was human." Jaemin chirps and pulls lollipops out of the little pouch hanging off of his shoulder. As he counts them and checks the flavors Jaehyun raises a brow at him, questioning, but Jaemin simply hands him one.

It’s just a blood lollipop. Surprisingly safe, coming from Jaemin who probably has more problematic things in that little strawberry-shaped bag.

"1973 for me," Hendery adds, snagging a lollipop and holding one out to Jisung and Sungchan who each take them skeptically. Sungchan holds his out to Renjun to sniff and bites back a laugh as Renjun’s nose immediately wrinkles at the iron scent buried beneath just too much sugar for his comfort. "Blood candy sounds gross–"

"Sure does," Renjun says.

"But I promise it's a lot better than you think it is. It isn’t exactly pleasing on the senses at first but you get used to the flavor really quick. Besides, sometimes blood is blood, ya know?" Hendery smiles sweetly and Jisung looks up at Sungchan. He’s giving his best, big puppy dog eyes and Sungchan knows that Jisung is going to pull his baby brother privilege card out.

Sungchan is the older brother. He _has_ to try it first. That’s just how things work out and while Sungchan might be used to it, he still finds himself rolling his eyes at Jisung as he pulls the wrapper off of the candy and pops it into his mouth with a thoughtful hum. It doesn’t really taste like anything other than the cherry coating on the candy but as he swipes his tongue over the heart shape he catches the familiar, rich flavor of blood on his tongue. It’s still mostly hidden under the flavoring and Sunchcan pulls it out of his mouth to look at it in mild confusion. 

"I'm not kissing you after that," Renjun says rather sternly as he rests his hands on his hips, looking at the candy in mild disgust, while Jaemin laughs outright.

Sungchan rolls his eyes at them, too, and considers the candy again. He decides that he doesn’t hate it and pops it back into his mouth for another taste. "It's actually...cherry flavored? I like it."

"I told you!" Hendery grins and reaches for another one before Jaemin pops one into his mouth and pats the top of his head.

"No one is really sure how they're made, but they're definitely made with blood and stave off hunger," Jaehyun says and reaches a hand out for one. Jaemin sticks his tongue out before he's tickled into squeals by his sire, handing off the candy with a chorus of giggles.

Kun looks at Taeyong and tries not to sigh. This is something he should have expected but it’s far harder to see in person and consider. 

The glue that holds Johnny and Jaehyun’s friendship together is industrial strength and derived from their incredible similarities and the volume of love in their hearts. They’re selfless to the core and tend to act for the bettering of others before stopping to think about what the consequences might be. It’s proved to be dangerous in Johnny’s case but Kun is no idiot and he can see the comfort Sungchan and Jisung have around Jaehyun.

He’s not going to say anything if they won’t. He might think Johnny is a fool but he will protect everyone in this room the best he can.  
  
Besides, it’s hardly the first emergency turning in their friend group. Jaemin’s own transition hadn’t been planned and was entirely dependent on Jaehyun’s ability to move and act and Johnny’s nearly sixth sense that let him know that his best friend needed his help once Jaemin had collapsed in the bathroom, trembling with the cocktail of party drugs in his system. It had all happened before Kun could intervene––not that he would have. There were cases when the vampiric system needed to be avoided when it involved those you cared for and Kun stands by that.

All Kun could do was hold Hendery while he sobbed and get all of them out of the club as quietly as he could. It was a flurry of movement and panic and Taeyong’s hands shaking as he pulled Hendery into his arms and Ten, all elbows and heavy eyeliner, shoved through the crowd with Yuta to get them all out. But it was _action_ and _love_ and Kun could never blame Jaehyun for it.

Johnny's equally too big heart had him saving Sungchan the same way he'd been saved–had acted before he could talk to anyone, except for Jaehyun, maybe. Kun won’t ask and Jaehyun won’t tell. 

Taeyong's heart hurts because Johnny would treat his boys with the same playful love and affection.

“I think,” Jaehyun says as he climbs off of Kun’s lap and presses a soft kiss to Taeyong’s cheek as he passes him to go to the fridge, “that we should watch some movies from the best period in cinema.”

“Here _you_ go,” Jaemin laughs but is more than happy to bounce out of the kitchen with Renjun to the home theater. “He is convinced that the 80s were the absolute pinnacle of cinema. Won’t hear any arguments, it’s a little ridiculous.”

Renjun hums at that. “I mean, _Heathers_ did come out in the 80s… But,” he says before Jaemin can complain, “ _The Craft_ and _Clueless_ came out in the 90s. So, I think I’m going to respectfully disagree with the sentiment of the 80s being superior.”

Jaehyun points his coke bottle at Renjun and shakes his head slowly. “Prepare to be convinced, young padawan.”

•❅──────✧❅✦❅✧──────❅•

"He's driving them crazy," Kun says as Jaehyun drags all of their charges into the living room to watch whichever movie from his previous life that comes to mind first and smiles as he startles a laugh out of Taeyong. "Absolutely miserable, in fact. I think he's hoping if he aggravates them enough, they'll let him out."

"One can only hope," Taeyong pouts and takes a long sip of his wine. He's been drinking more and Kun is going to intervene if Renjun won't.

Which, if his judgment of the boy is right, will happen the moment he notices.

"Two weeks, Taeyong," Kun reminds him, as if they will help any.

Taeyong does offer him a smile and when he rests his head on Kun's shoulder, Kun presses a soft kiss to the top of his head. It's the longest they've been apart as long as Kun has known them and it's very firmly Johnny's _fault_ that it's happened at all.

Kun really should beat his ass.

He won’t because Jaehyun and Taeyong wouldn’t want him to but he still entertains the idea.

**_Days Until Johnny’s Return: 14._ **


	5. v.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Los Angeles, 1985_ and _Brooklyn, New York, 1996_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> big trigger warnings for drug use & an overdose in this chapter. i can't tag specific parts because it is. everywhere. the whole thing. read at your discretion.

_Los Angeles, 1985_

There are five things of which Jaehyun is stupidly certain of as he dances against Johnny, head resting against his shoulder as the bass booms in the club and the strobe lights dance above their heads, bouncing off Taeyong’s cheekbones as he tosses his pink hair and laughs brightly. 

  1. That his new friends are absolutely vampires, confirmed by the light drag of Johnny’s fangs along the bared column of his throat. He doesn’t mind this as much as he thought he might. They’re hot and nice and very much don’t sleep in coffins so they’re alright in Jaehyun’s book.
  2. Yuta was right. Shrooms kind of fucking hit, man.
  3. The sun is about to rise and they’ve been at this club since 9 pm. He should be tired but he can taste colors and everything has this lovely violet haze. 
  4. He might die soon. Of anything, really. He gets calls every week from his mother in New York begging him to stop going out, to not sleep with strangers, to be _safe_. The virus, she pleads. There are serial killers, she insists. Jaehyun keeps dancing.
  5. Kun, the newest vampire in their little group, is looking at him like he wants to eat him. Jaehyun is going to let him. 



Jaehyun knows his blood is singing as Taeyong crowds him against Johnny with another round of delighted little giggles, Jaehyun’s arms wrapping around his waist to feel the way the cocaine running through the vampire’s system makes his heartbeat at a normal pace against his chest. There is so much safety in their arms once they stop being johnnyandtaeyong and let Jaehyun just melt into them, his eyes sliding shut so he can just feel.

Pulsing bass. Johnny’s hands on his hips. Taeyong’s arms around his shoulders. Love.

Everything is quick passing, dancing across his skin for a moment and then it’s gone. Johnny and Taeyong, they’re forever. Yuta and Doyoung, too. Ten, despite the whip way he moves on the bar with tens, fifties, and hundreds at his feet, is also forever.

And then Kun. Jaehyun rolls his head on his neck and opens his eyes to where he knows Kun is standing. There’s a drink in his hand and a heat in his eyes and Jaehyun throws his head back in offering. Taeyong kisses his Adam’s apple, hands sliding down his chest, and Kun _finally_ crosses the floor to them.

Jaehyun thought he might have to draw blood to get his attention. 

Kun’s hands are ice cold as they slip between Johnny and Taeyong to curl around Jaehyun and pry him out of their hold. His nose draws a chilly trail over Jaehyun’s cheek and he didn’t realize how hot he’d become until he was pressed against an ice-cold body rather than two lukewarm ones. 

“Can I borrow him?” Kun asks and Jaehyun tucks his heated face into his neck with a soft laugh as Johnny snorts. He can just see Taeyong wave them off as he wiggles himself into his boyfriend’s arms and decides to tuck his warm nose into the place where Kun’s heart would beat if it still could. Kun’s breath hitches just so and through the warm, lavender haze, Jaehyun tucks that information away for another time.

“Borrow him? Does that mean that you’re going to give him _back_?” Johnny asks, not a single dragged syllable in sight. He’s sober and Jaehyun feels sorry for him even though he knows that someone should be. Johnny’s too nice. Jaehyun thinks he should let loose and make Ten be sober for once.

“Not tonight,” Kun says and Jaehyun meets the lovely dark brown of his eyes as Kun draws him closer. The red strobe light passes over his face and Jaehyun feels his knees buckle with raw attraction. There is a tiny kernel of realism that remains even in the slow spinning kaleidoscope of his brain that is screaming that Kun is dangerous and a predator, but doesn’t that part of his brain realize that maybe, just maybe, Jaehyun _wants_ to be his prey? “Come over tomorrow?”

“Or don’t,” Jaehyun grins and waves at Johnny and Taeyong. He’ll see them again regardless. 

They don’t make it out of the club, not that Jaehyun really expected them to. 

Before Kun pressed him up against the grimy wall of the bathroom stall, Jaehyun would have said that nirvana can be found somewhere in between the swirls of the world when shrooms roll through his system. Once Kun pulls the knot on Jaehyun’s tied silk shirt, slides his cold hands up his shirt as he sinks to his knees, and swallows his cock down his throat with ease, Jaehyun _knows_ this is where he can find nirvana. The bass is shaking the graffitied walls, vibrating the floor beneath Jaehyun’s feet, but all Kun can focus on is the cool cavern of Kun’s mouth and the bite of his short and pointed nails digging into his abs as he swallows Jaehyun’s cock down. 

There are few things worth dying for but Jaehyun thinks this makes his shortlist.

Kun’s bed is softer than soft when his chest is pushed into the silk sheets and Jaehyun tacks that onto the list as well, Kun’s hands tight on his hips as he fucks what little of his brain is still left functioning out with maddeningly deep thrusts. He thought he’d lived before, he really did, but this is more than heaven, more than nirvana.

This is living and for the first time, Jaehyun thinks that he wants to do it forever.

•❅──────✧❅✦❅✧──────❅•

Ten’s got a balcony in his penthouse apartment and Jaehyun, rather wisely, thinks that it’s the balcony and not the penthouse that’s the lap of luxury. There’s a cloudy sky and Jaehyun splays out on the balcony carpet to watch Ten’s smoke stretch out over the gray sky. Like Kun, Ten’s skin is colder than ice but it doesn’t stop Jaehyun from pressing a soft kiss to his ankle when he stretches his leg in his direction. It earns him a suck of the teeth and a fond smile, so Jaehyun doesn’t regret anything, really.

“Tennie?”

“Mm.”

“Do you...know how old Kun is? You don’t have to tell me, that’s probably a very private thing, right? Vampires live forever so you like, shouldn’t ask. But…”

“But you want Kun.” It’s not a question so Jaehyun doesn’t respond other than curling his fingers around Ten’s dainty ankle and tracing the red ink snake tattoo there. “And wanting Kun means that you get privileges that the average human wouldn’t… If I tell you, you can’t tell him. Promise?”

Jaehyun quietly holds his pinky out and grins wide and dopey when Ten links their pinkies. “Promise.”

Ten takes a long drag of the cigarette in his hand and lets the smoke pour from his nose like an elegant dragon. His dark hair falls into his eyes as he looks out at the city and thinks about lifetimes and generations gone by.

Ten must be old. As old as Kun–maybe a little older, maybe a little younger.

“Kun and I were made in 1723 and 1790, respectively. We have seen the world change drastically, watch it keep changing, and sit eternally untouched by it all in a physical sense.” 

But living that long leaves trauma lingering under the skin. Jaehyun’s seen it in Yuta, who cannot stay out too long before his nerves get overstimulated and he wakes up at unholy hours reminded of blood, carnage, and the sobs of people whose faces he can barely remember. He’s found comfort in Jaehyun’s heartbeat a few times, has let Doyoung and Jaehyun squeeze him between them while he sobs his fill and Jaehyun thinks about how badly Yuta must have suffered.

He wonders on the same hand, how badly Kun and Ten must have suffered, too. America’s not kind to people who look like them, party like them, and love like they love, but they seem to have made a home here for the time being.

“But mentally, shit fucking blows.”

Ten laughs and taps his ashes into the little heart-shaped ashtray at his side. “Shit fuckin’ _blows_ , bro. People ain’t shit and only know how to pull on your dick with their dry hands and try to throw you in prison for existing. But some...some are good. _You’re_ good, Jaehyunnie.”

Jaehyun doesn’t think so. He’s a bad son who makes bad choices and lies to his mother when she asks him if he’s gone to a club or has had safe sex. He’s been fucking vampires fairly exclusively for six months and vampires can’t carry diseases so there’s been no real reason for rubbers, even though he probably should anyway, and clubbing is his preferred hobby. He won’t stop, not even for his mother.

“I guess so.” He sits up and hums as Ten cards his fingers through his hair gently. “History’s been bad to him, huh? Like, as bad as it’s been to Yuta or…?”

“Kun has had the fortune of typically being on the right side of history when Yuta hasn’t but even that is horrible sometimes. Everyone bears their burdens differently, Jaehyunnie. But Kun likes you a lot.”

Jaehyun rests his chin on his hand, thumb pressing lightly against a dark bruise under his jaw and thinking about the way Kun had pushed him against a wall next to a Shang dynasty pot and licked and sucked at the skin there before asking for a taste of him. Being bitten felt better than the little ecstasy tablets he’d had at the club and, yeah, Jaehyun had passed out but it was more than fucking worth it.

“I like _him_ a lot. I think forever with him–with all of you guys, really–sounds real fuckin’ dope.”

Ten laughs, leaning down to press a soft kiss to the crown of Jaehyun’s head. “You’re already perfect, baby. The world deserves to have you and those pretty ass dimples forever.”

•❅──────✧❅✦❅✧──────❅•

Forever, for Jaehyun, comes on New Year's Eve, 1985. He’s known Kun for nearly a year on the dot when needle-sharp fangs dig into his throat, tear a scream from his lips, and his world tilts hard and fast to the left. His throat burned and when Kun’s blood poured into his parted lips like a fine wine, all of the pain slipped away because the world stopped spinning off of his axis and narrowed down to Kun.

Kun and his kind eyes. Kun and his beautiful smile. KunKun _Kun_. 

Kun is his, forever, and with lips coated in his boyfriend’s blood, Jaehyun smiles.

•❅──────✧❅✦❅✧──────❅•

_Brooklyn, New York, 1996_

“Baby,” Jaemin croons, sugar sweet and cotton candy as he slips into Hendery’s lap with a tiny pill between his index finger and thumb. “I thought I told you not to be an angel for Halloween.”

Hendery reaches up and intentionally quirks his wire halo to the side. “I’m a fallen angel,” he says and opens his mouth for the pill, “cuz I’ve fallen hard for you.” It’s not his corniest line, but Jaemin loves it and giggles as he puts the pill on his own tongue. He passes it to Hendery in a languid kiss, tongues twisting before Jaemin pulls away to press their foreheads together. He’s a cat, or so Hendery guesses, because his tail has long since vanished into the crowd to be trampled underfoot by their friends who are just as high, and maybe higher than them.

“I still told you not to be an angel. That even goes for angels who fall because they’re in love with me.” Jaemin’s pupils are blown and the light blue lights in the room make his powder blue hair glow like a halo.

Maybe he’s the angel, actually.

Hendery’s quiet for a long moment before he hears a loud crash and a chorus of laughter. Jaehyun stumbles onto the couch beside them and leans in to press a sweet kiss to each of their cheeks. He’s flying _high_ and Hendery wants to be where he is.

He can’t, his human heart can’t take it, but _fuck_ , does it look like fun.

Jaehyun’s dressed up as Peter Pan and looks very, very cute. Hendery gives him a kiss on his cheek, too, right on the dimple, and pulls another laugh out of him. He tells them that Yuta broke one of Ten’s vases but all of them were too in the clouds to care. Wild, because that vase looked fucking expensive, but Hendery’s gotten used to the way things work with their clubbing friends. 

“Don’t you look cute,” Jaehyun grins and reaches over to pat the fluffy halo of Jaemin’s hair. “Little kitty cat~ I think I saw your tail by the jungle juice.”

Jaemin wrinkles his nose. “The jungle juice is _toxic_ and I know better than to venture over there.”

“So,” Jaehyun replies and taps Jaemin on the nose, “are drugs but that hasn’t stopped you from skittling all night.” Jaemin doesn’t even bother to look sheepish as he settles down against Hendery and sways lightly with the music pouring from the speakers. They all know that Yuta makes the vilest jungle juice that has the ability to even get the oldest of vampires absolutely trashed and, technically, the humans aren’t let near it. 

Hendery likes it, though, and Ten is always happy to sneak him a cup.

•❅──────✧❅✦❅✧──────❅•

Jaemin doesn’t remember leaving the house but he knows that they leave it with Johnny, Jaehyun, Yuta, Ten, and Kun. Taeyong and Doyoung stay to host, absently tell them to be safe, and then Jaemin is spinning in a club in the Alphabet. He is out of his body, soul floating somewhere between the ceiling and the sky, but he feels _good_. Ten dances with him for a while, then Yuta and Jaemin holds onto his shoulders to admire the pretty fire that always lingers behind his eyes, and then…

Jaemin is in the arms of a stranger who smiles at him, wraps an arm around his waist, and offers him some blow. He’s been trying to lay off the habit, he fucking hates nosebleeds, but he’s already pinwheeling, and blow sounds so fucking good right now. “How much?” He shouts over the Tupac booming through the speakers and grabs the stranger’s hands when they wander, batting his long lashes at him. “Sorry, baby, I’m taken!”

Telling him that, Jaemin learns when he falls to his knees on the bathroom, was a mistake. The world is off-kilter and when Hendery sinks down beside him and wraps his arms around his middle, every touch burns and Jaemin is screaming before he knows it. His heart is beating too fast and his vision is going far faster than he thought it would.

He’s in Hendery’s arms even if it hurts, and if he has to die at any time at all, at least it’s _here_. One of the only places where he feels safe. He thinks Hendery is crying but he’s too far gone to tell.

From here, he only remembers the bathroom door slamming open and Jaehyun skidding across the floor to them with Kun and Johnny at his heels. They are speaking too loud and too fast for his brain to keep up with as the world starts to darken just a little faster at the edges. 

“Save him! _Save him!_ ” Hendery begs, screaming in Kun’s arms as Johnny’s cool fingers press to Jaemin’s pulse. Dimly, Jaemin can hear Johnny swear and after that the world is a dark, burning, and painful place.

Jaehyun holds Jaemin to his chest and prays for the first time since he was sixteen years old. He holds his frail, trembling friend to his chest and rocks with him as the transition fights with the drugs in a struggle to see which will kill him.

They don’t know if this will work. Ten and Yuta are in the doorway, Hendery’s screams have quieted down but he’s still sobbing in Kun’s chest when Jaemin’s heart finally stops. A club hasn’t ever been that silent and Jaehyun holds his breath. 

“Jaemin..?” He whispers, gently cradling his cheek in his hand. He’s paler than death and for a moment, Jaehyun is horrified. He failed them.

And then a frail, hummingbird pulse starts up against his wrist and Jaemin opens his eyes, the warm brown replaced by a violent crimson with his hunger. 

“Welcome back, Nana…”

Jaemin manages a small giggle and rolls his head on his shoulders. Everything hurts and even the dim club lights seem too bright but…

He’s here. He’s alive.

“How do you feel?” Ten calls from the door, biting his lip.

Jaemin considers that. “Like I’ve been brutalized by some hydraulics…”

“Sounds about right,” Yuta laughs and tilts his head. “Gotta get you out of here before the cops get called. I know your throat is burning.” That feels like the understatement of the century but Jaemin was just screaming on the floor of a club bathroom. Kind of a nasty start to vampirism, if you ask him. 

**_Days Until Johnny’s Return: 12._ **


	6. vi.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Renjun reunites with friends, talks to Taeyong, and Taeyong finally gets to see Johnny again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> heyyyyy besties! i'm sorry this chapter took so long but i hope you enjoy!

Renjun sits in the window that faces out to the street and facetimes Jeno, foot bouncing just a little as he waits for him to answer. He doesn’t have to wait long, he never really has to when it’s Jeno, and Renjun smiles warmly when he sees Xuxi tucked in behind Jeno with his chin on his shoulder.

He knew that he missed them desperately, but he didn’t realize how much until he gets the opportunity to see them again. It’s not ideal as far from what Renjun wants right now but it’s as close as Renjun can really get right now.

He’s spoken to them, texts and calls here and there, but seeing their faces makes a rush of affection rocketing through him and he has to blink tears away with a soft laugh. “Fuck, I missed you,” he nearly whispers and wipes under his eyes with the heel of his hand. Xuxi reaches his hand out towards Jeno’s phone for comfort and it’s not enough but it is enough to make Renjun smile. 

“How are you holding up in the...bro, is it a fucking mansion?” Xuxi asks and Jeno lightly pops him on the cheek. Probably a decent choice, considering that vampires have the hearing everyone thinks they do.

“It’s a manor,” Renjun says with a small smile and turns a little to show the sitting room. “But, honestly, I’m doing okay, I just…” He swings his leg a little and leans against the wall. “I miss you guys…”

“We miss you, too, Junjun,” Jeno says softly, smiling at him. “No hope for visiting?”

Renjun isn’t sure. It’s better to be safe than sorry but he knows everyone is desperate to see each other. Jisung misses Chenle, Sungchan misses Xuxi, Renjun misses Jeno. But safety. It’s an endless circle. “I might ask, I don’t want to upset any stability I offer but…”

“Renjun, don’t you think you’ve sacrificed enough in your life?” It hurts more painful than a bullet and Renjun looks away. “I don’t mean it like abandoning them, we know you’d never do that and I don’t expect you to, but you need time to yourself.”

He does. He knows he does. It’s just hard to separate himself from them when they’ve already lost so much. But Taeyong is a grown man who is more than capable of taking care of two young vampires. Probably more capable than Renjun is even if Taeyong would ardently disagree. “I’ll ask,” he amends and Xuxi gives Jeno a short look.

Jeno, to his credit, does look a little sheepish for what he said. He’s right, though, and Renjun doesn’t want him to apologize.

“My scent might upset them if you come back with it,” he starts but Taeyong comes into the hallway and tilts his head. His curiosity is a gentle thing and Renjun turns enough for Jeno and Xuxi to be able to see Taeyong as he smiles and comes up to the phone. He waves with a gentle wiggle of his fingers and both boys wave back at him with shy smiles.

“You’re Xuxi and Jeno, right? Xuxi, you’re a werewolf?” Xuxi nods and rests his cheek on Jeno’s shoulder as he considers Taeyong. There’s something in his eyes that Renjun recognizes as possessiveness even if Renjun isn’t in immediate reach. He’d probably have the same look in his eyes if Taeyong were around Jisung and Sungchan even though they’re both vampires now.

Taeyong is a stranger to Xuxi and that stranger is also a vampire and might be a danger to Renjun. Renjun misses Xuxi so fucking much it makes him feel a little sick. “Chances are that, subconsciously, your scent is still familiar to Sungchan and Jisung and it won’t be a problem for you to hang out outside of the house! Honestly, you should just go~”

It’s such an odd thought for Renjun to have but leaving the house sounds...nice. But he also wants to limit his contact. “Can it just be the three of us?”

“Of course it can! You saw enough of Yangyang before resettling anyway.” Jeno grins as Renjun and Xuxi snicker. “Do you want to go to our usual cafe?” There's so much comfort there and Renjun craves that as much as he craves curling into Jeno’s arms and letting the tension just flood out of him for a little while.

Renjun nods, they say their goodbyes, and Taeyong wraps his arms around him as he presses a soft kiss to the top of his head. “You deserve time for yourself, too, Renjun. Go tell the boys and get out of the house, baby.”

‘Baby’. It’s been so long since Renjun has been called ‘baby’ in a paternal sense and Renjun sinks into Taeyong with closed eyes to fight back a fresh wave of tears. “I’ll go tell Sungchan and Jisung…”

•❅──────✧❅✦❅✧──────❅•

Walking into the cafe and being swept up by the smell of fresh pastries and Jeno’s strong and familiar arms overwhelms Renjun in the best way. He clings to him and presses his face into his shoulder with a soft laugh as he’s spun around. He hadn’t realized there was a hole in his heart until Jeno holds him tight and fills it, their cheeks pressed together as Xuxi smiles brightly from their table. He waits his turn more patiently than Renjun expects but he’s pulled into Xuxi’s lap and held just as tight. It’s comfort and warmth and it’s so nice to be around people who are not directly impacted by Johnny’s arrest. 

“Do you want to talk about it?” Jeno asks once they have their drinks and Renjun considers the question. There’s really not much to say that Jeno and Xuxi don’t know at this point. 

And Renjun, quite honestly, wants to hear about something not vampire-related right now. “No,” he says softly, tapping his nails against his latte. They’re long and the short acrylics he’d gotten look like a mess. Xuxi touches his hand gently. “Not much has changed, honestly. Johnny’s still gone, everyone is still holding on by a thread, I hate bureaucracy. No new information to be shared.”

“You’re stressed the fuck out,” Jeno says softly and Renjun slumps against Xuxi’s chest. “You’ve been stressed the fuck out for months, Jun, and you don’t have to do this alone.”

Everyone keeps saying that, maybe it’s time Renjun starts listening to them. Taeyong has a support system and Sungchan and Jisung have Taeyong and all of the older vampires who have taken to them but Renjun has been taking care of them for years. They’re _his_ and it’s difficult to hand over control.

“I know I don’t. But I don’t want to talk about it, Nono. I want to drink this tea, hear about how your thesis is going, and then go get my nails done. Can we do that? Can I just...forget for a little while?”

Xuxi squeezes Renjun’s middle and gives him a small kiss on the cheek. “Whatever you need from us, we’ll give you.”

It’s nice to finally let himself be spoiled again.

•❅──────✧❅✦❅✧──────❅•

"You can see him." Taeyong stares at his phone before bringing it back to his ear. Doyoung’s voice is loud and clear but Taeyong is having trouble wrapping his mind around his words. "As soon as tomorrow, if you want."

Tomorrow. _Tomorrow._ It doesn’t seem real. 

"You know I want it more than anything. Tomorrow?" He is up in a moment before he pauses, his stomach sinking slightly. "I can't bring the boys, can I? They won’t let me?”

"No. But that's for their own good. They don’t need to be there and be under possible scrutiny when they are simply doing their very best to be functional.”

Doyoung has a point but it still breaks Taeyong's heart. The boys deserve to see Johnny, too. They’ve missed Johnny just as much as he has and it is only right for them to also get their chance. But Johnny is also going to get a very stern piece of Taeyong's mind and the boys don’t need to see that. Johnny won’t hear from him until after he kisses him senseless, obviously, because that is far more important to Taeyong after almost three months of missing his husband.

"Will you be there?" He asks as he resettles on the couch, brushing his fingers over the top of Ruby’s head with a soft sigh. 

Doyoung hums softly and Taeyong can hear the sounds of Yuta and Shotaro arguing over something in the background. The Japanese is too fast for Taeyong to keep up with but he smiles all the same. It’s a comfortable sound and he lets it relax him a little bit. “Do you want me to be?"

"...Please?" Even to Taeyong, his voice sounds very small. He wants to see Johnny, _needs_ to see Johnny, but the idea of walking through the council building alone is a daunting one. They fear him as much as he hates them but that does not mean he will make it out unscathed.

"Oh, Taeyong… You're not going to kill him, honey," Doyoung sighs softly, resting his chin on his hand. "I know you think you might, but you won't. You love him too much and you miss him too much."

"That's not saying he won't deserve it," Yuta calls and Taeyong laughs softly. There has never been a time in their friendship where Yuta wasn’t excited for Johnny to be in trouble. "Go with him, Doie. You know you want to."

Doyoung _does_ want to see Johnny get yelled at by Taeyong. He certainly deserves it and it is going to be nothing short of hilarious if Taeyong can manage to put his frustration into proper words. But Taeyong also deserves to just be with Johnny—to hold his husband and bury his face into his neck like they all know he wants to. They deserve to be alone but if Taeyong wants his support, Doyoung will not deny him.

"If you want me to go with you, Taeyong, I'll go," he says finally and tilts his head back to get a kiss from Yuta, who happily complies.

"I do," Taeyong says softly and smiles as Renjun comes into the sitting room with tea. He makes it when he's stressed, Taeyong has noticed.

“I’ll come to pick you up whenever you’d like. What time are you thinking?”

Renjun sits on the floor and Taeyong slides down from the couch to join him, the phone still pressed to his ear as Renjun pours them both tea. It’s easy to get comfortable at the familiar ritual and Taeyong watches Renjun pour with a tiny quirk of his lips. It’s always so smooth, his hand careful and practiced, and Taeyong thinks that he might even give Kun a run for his money.

"Does noon work for you?"

"Noon is good,” Doyoung hums and Taeyong smiles softly as he can hear his attention draw away. Yuta is close and with Yuta close, even if Doyoung is hard at work, Doyoung’s attention starts to wander. Taeyong can’t blame him for that–not when he would do the same if Johnny was close.

It doesn’t hurt to hear them and to know that yes, they’re in love, but still. Taeyong’s heart is fragile and he is lonely. “Perfect~ I have to go, it’s tea time with Renjun and I have to give my darling my full attention.” Renjun laughs softly and gently sets Taeyong’s teacup in front of him. It’s a new tea set, glass with lotus petals at the foot of each cup, and Taeyong guesses it’s a gift from Kun. 

"That is such a hard habit for you to break, isn't it? Who has tea time in 2021, Taeyong?"

“We do! See you tomorrow~” 

Renjun tilts his head curiously when Taeyong hangs up the phone and takes the dainty little teacup in his hand. "What's happening tomorrow?" he asks, bringing his own cup to his lips and taking a sip. 

"I got approved to see Johnny," Taeyong says softly and smiles at the way Renjun lights up. He’s been happier since getting out of the house even if his stress levels haven’t quite leveled out. "Doyoung will be going with me."

"Are you going to yell at him?" Renjun asks, lips quirked up against the lip of his teacup. The fire inside of him is endearing and Taeyong makes himself comfortable against the couch. 

"Oh, I will certainly try to," Taeyong grins and sips his tea with a soft smile. "I imagine you'd do the same if it were you?"

"I certainly would." Renjun looks down at his tea before he turns his head up to take Taeyong in. "It's been more awful for you than you've let on, hasn't it? I know it’s been awful, I’ve _heard_ how you cry when you miss him, but you smile like everything is alright." The warm brown of his eyes burn as if they can see directly into Taeyong’s soul and he finds himself lowering his cup to cradle it in his lap in shame. 

"You don't need that burden, Renjun... I share it enough and you have already taken so much."

"You don't." Renjun frowns and reaches over to rest his hand on Taeyong's knee. "Share your burden with us. We miss him too even if we haven't known him as long as you. We can handle a little more sadness if it helps you. And, sure, I’ve been down kind of bad recently but I’m working on it. You’re not getting the same release, Taeyong. You’re here and you’re sad and there’s nothing we can do to help. Let _us_ help."

Taeyong looks at Renjun, this young boy of only twenty-two, and thinks about how at that age he and Johnny had felt like they were at the top of the world. Johnny hadn't yet gotten sick and they'd spent their nights planning how they'd run away to live their lives how they wanted.

He thinks about standing on their building’s fire escape, Johnny’s hands linked around his middle as they looked up at the full moon above the city. Life was simple for them at twenty-two. It’s not for Renjun.

He thinks about how Renjun has spent the past three months taking care of two fledgling vampires and the four months before that at his boyfriend's bedside praying that he would survive the sickness breaking his immune system down.

That Taeyong truly understands. Maybe if Taeyong talks about it, they’ll both feel a little less alone. 

"Do you know how we were turned?" Taeyong says instead of sharing his burden. Renjun shakes his head and sits up a little straighter. "It's...a very similar story to yours, actually, if you'd like to hear it."

"I would if you don't mind." It’s not exactly what he’s asked for but if Taeyong is willing to share this, Renjun is more than willing to listen.

"Not at all! It's not very sad."

That's not quite true, not when Taeyong had thought Johnny was going to die of the Spanish flu, but they had met Yuta and Doyoung at that point and Taeyong was not alone at Johnny's beside in Yuta's New York City townhouse.

Taeyong misses New York, sometimes. Then he remembers his first history there and remembers his more recent history there and misses it a little less. But it is still where he met Johnny, Doyoung, and Yuta and holds a very special space in his heart despite all the pain it holds for him. 

"I was at his bedside every day, much like I understand you were," Taeyong says, finger rubbing over his teacup as he gathers the story from the recesses on his mind. "He'd served in the Great War as a medic before getting sick but that's not too important to this story."

"But it's important to him as a person,” Renjun says softly. Johnny moves with selfless purpose and determination but he’s also selfish with his love and wants. 

"Oh, very much and he'll never say it. It was a bad time but it helped mold him—where it hardened others, it made Johnny very, very kind."

Johnny is a very complicated person, Renjun is coming to realize.

"He caught the Spanish Flu, in 1918. I thought it terribly unfair, that he helped save so many lives only to come home and have this stupid flu try and take his life. I'd known him since we were children, you know? We were neighbors and...sweethearts."

Taeyong's eyes are wet. Renjun has heard him cry so many times but seeing it is much different. 

Renjun reaches over and holds his hand tightly in his own and Taeyong gives the back of it a small kiss in gratitude. "At first, we'd thought he was going to recover. He's built _so_ strong, after all..."

"But he kept getting worse," Renjun says softly. He knows the feeling well.

"He did." Taeyong takes a long breath and brings his tea back up to his lips to take a sip. "We'd known Doyoung for a while then, too, and he had just fallen horribly in love with Yuta who hated to see us in any sort of emotional turmoil. So he proposed a solution."

Renjun has not yet met Yuta formally because Doyoung tends to come alone or with the fledglings when he visits but from what he has heard, the older vampire is equal parts wild and kind. He seems like he fits in well with everyone Renjun has met. "He was a vampire then?"

"Oh, Yuta is _old_ ," Taeyong laughs. “He’s been a vampire since the nineteenth century. He doesn’t like talking about it much but if you ever need help with something artistic from that time, Yuta is your man. I digress.

"But, no, Doyoung had not yet been turned. Yuta was not confident in his ability to turn any of us and especially not Johnny in his weakened state, but he knew an older vampire doctor who, at the very least, would be happy to help nurse him back to health if he could. He was such a kind man..."

Taeyong has already lost so much in his life. It’s unfair that he has to possibly lose Johnny _again_ on top of all of that... "What was his name?" Renjun asks very softly, trying not to push any buttons and push Taeyong into a proper cry. Watery eyes are perfectly acceptable, he can work with those. 

"Yunho. It was funny to Johnny at the time because his Korean name is Youngho, but he tried to find as many funny things as he could when he could."

That very much sounds like the Johnny Renjun knows.

"He'd helped Johnny recover for a while and we thought he was going to make a full recovery... But then he got worse suddenly and Yunho presented the two of us with a choice."

"Let him turn Johnny or let Johnny die." The similarities are glaring and Renjun sips his tea to keep his hands from shaking too badly. 

Taeyong nods, squeezing Renjun's hand again to steady them both. "I’m sure this all sounds scarily familiar, and for that I’m sorry, but I promise I’m almost done. For Johnny, the answer was easy. He wanted to live and he wanted to live with _me_. But at first, to me, forever sounded awful. To watch everyone else I love die? To watch _Doyoung_ die?"

They'd found a solution to that, obviously. Taeyong had gotten over his fear of forever and Doyoung lives alongside them both only two neighborhoods away. 

"But I couldn't lose Johnny and I could not make Johnny watch _me_ die when he could have me forever. We were turned that night." Taeyong looks at Renjun and exhales slowly, the smile on his lips made of the thinnest porcelain. Renjun isn’t afraid of Taeyong breaking, though. “One hundred and twenty-eight years I've had Johnny."

"And for three months a stupid group of eternal bureaucrats has kept him for you." Renjun sucks his teeth and shakes his head. "All for saving lives that needed to be saved."

"He didn't have permission..." But neither had Jaehyun. Nor Yuta. Johnny was a scapegoat.

Johnny is receiving the punishments of their friend group's sins and it is the stupidest thing Taeyong has had to experience.

"You don't think that's the reason, do you? It can’t be the reason, that’s just a matter of silly paperwork."

Taeyong sighs and looks at Renjun with another one of those sad smiles. Renjun wants him to feel genuine joy again. "I know it's not the reason. We're a bunch of troublemakers, you know?"

Renjun can tell. He's heard bits and pieces of their stories from the 90s and he knows, in vague terms, how Jaemin has come to meet forever. Taeyong is an immortal vampire who produces under a pseudonym and owns a fashion house. Johnny is a doctor. Doyoung still sings in clubs and occasionally teaches music to college students.

Yuta spends much of his time playing in local soccer leagues and is both a nail tech and a tattoo artist. Kun does his fair share of writing for the biggest names in Kpop. Jaehyun, while primarily a stay at home husband with his and Kun’s puppy, Cookie, takes part in illegal street races. They are what many would consider reckless but they are a unit and unbreakable.

Punishing one for the sins of the many is easy.

"But the council did not account for you," Taeyong smiles and gently chuffs Renjun under the chin with their joined hands. "Someone so determined to not let his hard work fail. Someone so in love with a boy that he would not let anything happen to him and his brother. You, Huang Renjun, are a spectacular little human and if it weren't for you, Johnny would be lost to me forever."

"Sungchan and Jisung would have been lost to me forever and I had to worry about keeping my own life, too," Renjun adds and lets his shoulders relax. "Thank you, for sharing that with me."

"We're the same, I think," Taeyong says after a moment, rubbing his finger along the side of his cup. He thinks Renjun is stronger than he could ever be, but he does not tell him that. He has put enough on his little human’s shoulders. 

"Yeah, I think so. I’m going to make more tea, I think..."

•❅──────✧❅✦❅✧──────❅•

The drive to the council house where Johnny is being held is far too long for Taeyong's liking and he looks out of the window as the city passes them by. Doyoung has music playing low in the background and Taeyong smiles as he recognizes the song. He wrote it, after all.

"Did they do it justice?" Doyoung asks softly, lips curled into a small smile. 

"The girls always do. I miss them, I might pay them a visit." He shouldn't, he knows, but he is allowed his vices at this point in his life and he's had enough of the council's opinions. If they want to censure him too, they’re welcome to.

"I think they'd like that."

They lapse into silence again and Taeyong pulls his legs to his chest. "He's alright, right? You promise?" He knows that Doyoung doesn't like to lie to him and won't if he can avoid it, but this is Taeyong’s husband. Doyoung wouldn't want him to worry.

"If he wasn't," Doyoung says slowly, tapping his thumbs on the steering wheel, "I wouldn't be bringing you to him now. You have already seen him at his worst, you don't need to see him tortured."

"Would they have tortured him?" Taeyong's voice is so very small. Doyoung hates how frail he’s becoming. Even when Johnny was on his deathbed it felt like Taeyong was made of indestructible brick. He’s not weak by any means, but he’s sad and tired and Doyoung _hates_ it.

"Honestly, I don't know."

He hopes that they wouldn't have, obviously, but the council has proven unpredictable in every regard in this situation. But Johnny has been well, annoying and longing constantly for his family, but well. He is healthy and unhappy and Doyoung has to admit this is the best case.

He wishes that they could move their plans for a hostile takeover up but they must play the long game even if the long game is testing both Taeyong’s patience and his heart. Taeyong will have to wait just a little longer for things to be in his favor but Doyoung is determined to turn the tables for his best friend.

Taeyong deserves revenge and while it won’t be violent, taking power from those who have had it for centuries is a satisfying course of action. 

They pull up to the house and Taeyong's eyes harden in a moment. Doyoung has heard Renjun refer to Taeyong and Sungchan's eyes as 'boba eyes' and he's inclined to agree, but all of that tapioca softness is gone as he stares down the building that holds his husband.

He's furious, and rightly so, and Doyoung wants him to keep that fury as they enter.

Taeyong is a gentle, loving man. Everyone knows this. No one expects rage from Taeyong and that's what makes it so satisfying to watch vampires cower away from his slight form. It's delicious.

“Where is my husband?” He asks with a voice as sweet as spun sugar, batting his eyelashes. It’s a sweet sight but it is artificial and meant to inspire fear.

The guards in front of Johnny's room freeze and when they don't move, Taeyong's fingers give a quick twitch and they fall to the ground with small gasps of pain. He’s owned his ability well over the years and Doyoung nudges one of their prone bodies out of the way with his foot so Taeyong can pass into the room unimpeded.

There is a reason people do not anger Taeyong and Doyoung gives a small hum of satisfaction as they step into the room.

"They'll think you're trying to break him out," Doyoung says but his tone is laced with amusement as Taeyong sprints across the room into Johnny's arms. Johnny swings him around, face tucked into his husband's neck, and Doyoung lifts his phone to snap a picture.

They've always been like this, Doyoung knows this better than most, but that doesn't mean it's anything short of delightful to see. 

Taeyong clings to Johnny, his arms and legs a vice around him, and when their lips meet, it's with a happy little coo from Taeyong and Johnny's laughter.

"I've missed you," Johnny whispers, letting Taeyong's scent fill his nose and relishing in the hints of his fledglings' scents on him. Renjun is there, too, and Johnny misses them all so deeply. "Gods, I've missed you more than anything on this earth..."

Taeyong lightly smacks him but he’s smiling and they all know Johnny isn’t in trouble with him at all. There are more pressing things to attend to like kissing his husband.

Johnny doesn't even flinch, simply turns his head to kiss Taeyong's palm. Taeyong pets lightly over his cheek, a sweet smile on his lips. There will never be a day where he tires of Johnny’s charms. "And I very much deserved that. I’m sorry, rosebud."

"You did," Taeyong kisses Johnny's forehead before he's set gently on his feet. "I missed you dearly and you are forgiven. But you are also the dumbest and most ridiculously self-sacrificing little _fuck_ I have ever met! Why on _earth_ wouldn't you tell anyone? Why would you try to do this alone?"

It’s easy to receive Taeyong’s ire and Johnny takes it in stride as he tucks his face back into the crook of Taeyong’s neck for a long moment. Johnny knows that he _did_ tell someone, but if there was one thing on earth Jaehyun does well it is keeping Johnny's secrets as his own. They could never tell another soul, not if they wanted their husbands to forgive them (except perhaps Joshua and Ten), but Jaehyun had Johnny’s back and Johnny had his. It had always been that way and would always be that way.

"Someone needed to raise them," he says quietly instead of voicing any of that, eyes closing as Taeyong cradles his head close.

Taeyong's eyes are soft again and Doyoung sighs, averting his eyes. "I couldn't let them take you away from them, too, Yongie. I'm so sorry that I couldn't tell you before they took me but they needed you and you needed _them_."

There are few things truer than that. Taeyong isn’t sure that he would have survived the separation from Johnny without Renjun and his tea dates or Sungchan pulling him into the living room to customize sneakers with him or Jisung playing Pokemon with him until the early mornings. The boys had become a lifeline and Taeyong can’t imagine life without them now.

Taeyong presses his face into Johnny's neck and melts as his husband holds him tight. His anger hasn't left him just yet but he does understand now. Giving the boys eternal life was a gift to them but the boys were for Taeyong. The children they could never have finally realized.

It had been a dream for a long time but fledglings were a complicated business. Eternal life should not be given lightly and all of their friends had changed lovers–or almost lovers, in the case of Shotaro and Donghyuck. Johnny had changed a family unit. Only Renjun is left.

"You are still in some trouble," Taeyong mumbles and they all know that Johnny is not actually in trouble. Not when Taeyong has missed his scent from the source and keeps nuzzling into him sweetly. "But I love them so much."

Johnny smiles and kisses the top of his head. "I know. I always knew that you would. How are they?"

"Renjun kept them on the world's tightest leash. It’s the most impressive thing I have ever seen," Doyoung says from the door, eyes fond.

"So he's alright?" 

"Oh, perfectly fine. They've never bit him and never even gotten aggressive with him. In fact, they're masters at control," Taeyong says as he cards his fingers through Johnny’s hair. He can’t get enough of him and Johnny is content to be spoiled under his touch.

Johnny, while he knew Renjun would be fully capable of taking care of the boys, is still terribly impressed. "They're better than Shotaro and Donghyuck?"

Taeyong giggles. "Much better than Hyuckie. He's still having trouble around Renjun, but he's getting better."

"They miss you," he says after a moment and Johnny squeezes him tighter. "But you'll be home soon."

Johnny can imagine their pain and feels it as sharp as his own. They're _his_ , after all, and he should be with them even if it is his own fault he's not. He will make it up to them.

He has to. They deserve better than what he's put them through.

"I miss them, too," he whispers and Taeyong gently rubs his back. "But I am so happy they're in good hands. In your hands."

"They were in good hands before me," Taeyong reminds him. He is glad for Renjun. Renjun's presence has eased the pain of not having Johnny near more than he could ever say. They understand each other and the space Renjun has taken up in Taeyong's heart is his all alone. "Have you...given the intent to turn Renjun?"

"I have."

Taeyong hums. "Can I turn him instead?"

Johnny's lips quirk up in a fond smile and he leans down to kiss Taeyong slowly, refamiliarizing himself with his lips. "You love him terribly, don't you?"

"Much more than I can say."

Johnny rubs their noses together. "Then the honor is yours. It's not easy, though."

"Family is never easy," Taeyong points out and kisses Johnny again, cradling his cheeks in his hands. The guards outside have finally managed to pick themselves up and Taeyong knows that their time is limited. "But they are our family now, and I want to keep them forever if I can."

"And you can. I won't let anyone stop you."

Doyoung knows that they are inches away from more trouble but Doyoung also knows that he already approved Johnny's intent. It is nothing to change the name to Taeyong's on the form that he filed himself. Renjun deserves forever with the family he’s made for himself.

Doyoung lets them kiss a little while longer before a guard knocks nervously on the door. "Taeyong..."

"I know..." he sighs and slowly steps away from Johnny, leaning into the hand that Johnny rests on his cheek. 

"Soon," Johnny promises, “I’ll be home soon.”

"Soon," Taeyong agrees.

Johnny presses another sweater into his hands as they leave and while Taeyong holds it close to his chest, he also turns back into the hard Taeyong that the guards fear.

They do not head towards the council room but Taeyong gives it a passing glance.

They will all be there in less than two weeks anyway. There is no need to disrupt them just yet.

Taeyong curls up into a little pill in the car, tears pooling in his eyes as he hugs the sweater close and all of the fight leaves him for now.

"I'm going to destroy them," he whispers into the knit and Doyoung reaches over to stroke his hair back.

"Easy, Taeyong, easy," Doyoung reminds him, petting his hair. "All in due time."

"They're taking too long to crack!" Taeyong protests, voice breaking and Doyoung's heart breaks alongside him. "Destruction from the inside is moving too _slowly_. I need them gone _now_ , Doie..."

Doyoung and Kun can't speed it up without suspicion but he has a feeling this final meeting for their family will. Renjun’s rage is only building and letting him loose on a room full of vampires is as effective as a full-blown physical assault.

**_Days Until Johnny’s Return: 10._ **

**Author's Note:**

> thanks for making it to the end!  
> you can talk to me on [twitter](https://twitter.com/faeriedoyoung) and also ask any questions you may have here on my [curiouscat](https://curiouscat.me/faeriedoyoung)!


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